


Ace of Spades

by Mihawkuri



Series: In Another Life... [1]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Angst, Blood and Injury, Christmas Fluff, College, Domestic Fluff, Drinking, Drinking Games, F/M, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gang Violence, Gangs, Kissing, Making Out, Modern AU, Non-Consensual Touching, Reverse Harem, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Sexual Tension, Slow Burn, Smut (maybe), Threats of Violence, Unrequited Love, crossplatform, halloween party
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 13:36:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 30
Words: 151,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28939353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mihawkuri/pseuds/Mihawkuri
Summary: A rascal with a penchant for making friends with the wrong people, Y/n was often regarded as a troublemaker by those around her. No one knew what it was about her, but she held a certain charm, much like her best friend, Monkey D. Luffy.Despite her traumatic childhood, she eventually grew up to become quite the personality, whether her father, Dracule Mihawk liked it or not.Portgas D. Ace, Eustass Kid, and Trafalgar Law had no idea what was coming their way...Side note: I'm really bad at writing summaries, so I'll give it to you straight. This story has gangs as well as the normal university stuff.Also, I update every 3~4 days!
Relationships: Eustass Kid/Reader, Portgas D. Ace/Reader, Trafalgar D. Water Law/Reader
Series: In Another Life... [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2130921
Comments: 120
Kudos: 189





	1. New Beginnings

Small, quiet, and malnourished, you were hardly noticeable, especially in the bustling streets of Venice. Yet, there you were, wrapped in a ragged blanket, huddled in the corner of a backway alley. 

You’d think a girl as young as ten wouldn’t last very long on the streets. Thankfully, most civilians were sympathetic and parted with what little cash they had on hand. With that, you could purchase newer clothes and utensils. The only downside was that you’d matured rather quickly for a child. 

Had it not been for your exceptional speed and talent for pick-pocketing, you might have already been dead. Thankfully, the skills that you picked up at your former orphanage were nothing if not helpful. Still, they were barely enough to keep you on your toes. With no friends, you had no one to support you but yourself. 

Cruel and relentless, your past home had a history of mistreating orphans. Perhaps living on the streets wasn’t much better, but it was a step-up from the treatment you received from the people running the nuthouse. 

At your young age, you might have died if it weren’t for that fateful day. Some might claim that you were unlucky enough to have bumped into him. Others might say that you were blessed with good karma. To you, it didn’t matter much, except for the fact that you were saved. 

It was a cold, bitter day in December. The wind whistled its shrill tune and the clouds were plump with the promise of snowfall. Snow piled high on front porches and snowed in the garages. 

It was a day that most people kept to themselves, bundled in their warm attire, hands resting atop a crackling fire. At some point, the snow might have been beautiful and wild, but now, it was nothing more than a disturbance, a cold slap of reality. With the way you were now, you’d never survive past winter. Your dirty attire did little to keep the wind out and your shelter--if you could even call it that--was now decrepit and damp from the snow. 

You were down to a single loaf of bread and a handful of dirty water, which in terms of health, was probably something you wanted to keep as a last resort. Deciding that you needed to scavenge, you pocketed your rusty shiv and scampered onto the pale streets. Silently making your way to the main plaza, you scanned the dispersed crowds for potential picks. It was then that your gaze landed on _him._ The man was garbed head to toe in black. A large coat was secured to his body to protect him from the cold, but other than that, he was practically naked. Save for his dark trousers and knee high boots, his pale torso was out for all to see. You immediately knew he wasn’t your average Venetian. The others around him moved out of his way. Whether it was from his intimidating demeanor or the air of nobility he carried, they didn’t want to find out. 

Unlike the others, you were in no position to be offset by him. You were in dire need of currency, and fast. The crucifix pendant that swung around his neck appeared to be quite expensive. It was an ornate piece of solid gold and silver. A pick like that could keep your belly full for weeks, if not longer. 

You pulled your hood over your face, not wasting a single second, and plunged into the crowd, pushing past the bystanders to reduce the distance between yourself and the man. 

Getting close to the target was easy, the harder part was taking the object around his neck. 

Judging by looks alone, he appeared to be the type who could hold himself in combat. That meant you had to be extra careful with him. Assuming this would be an easy pick, which it wasn’t, would be a mistake on your part. If anything, this would be one of your hardest.

‘The higher the risk, the more benefits you reap.’ You thought to yourself.

Taking a calculative step forward, you allowed your eyes to scan the crowds. No one, as of now, was a risk that could blow your plan. 

As luck would have it, he hadn’t noticed your presence yet, or so you thought.

Feeling bolder, you nudged past the civilian in front of you. Whipping out your shiv, you waited for the perfect moment to strike. 

As soon as the man turned away from you, you bumped into him, as if by ‘accident’. Murmuring a quick ‘sorry’, you bowed your head and retreated from him, but not before using the situation to your advantage. 

Using the moment of confusion you created, you sliced through the necklace and hopped out of the way. 

‘I’ve got it.’ You smiled to yourself. However, your luck was short lived. The moment you touched the metal, you realized your mistake.

' _Why had it been so easy to steal it?'_

To your dismay, your worst fears had been confirmed. 

You never had the upper-hand, in fact, it looked like you were being played this entire time. 

Being hasty had been your downfall, seeing as how your tattered hood was in the clutches of the man. You slowly looked up, your gaze met unblinking golden ones. The man peered down at you through his dark wide-brimmed hat, his demeanor cold and unreadable. 

“Did you think that little ruse was enough to fool me?” He asked calmly. Instead of answering him, you held onto the object even tighter, an action of defiance that didn’t go unnoticed by him. 

“In what way did you think it was wise to steal from me?” He squeezed the collar of your hood and pulled you nearer. Upon closer inspection, his groomed hair and trimmed mustache was a clear sign that he took care of his appearance. 

You grimaced in disdain and turned away from him, keeping your hand hidden behind your back. There was no way you were going to give it up. If you did, you’d surely starve in the coming days. 

“How long do you continue to keep silent? I tire of this senseless game.” The man released your hood and watched as you fell to the ground. He crouched down and extended his hand, as if expecting you to simply hand him his cross back. Instead of doing as he asked, you pocketed the necklace and jumped back, ready to sprint away at a moment's notice. 

Despite noticing your fidgeting, the man's posture was lax, almost at ease. To say that you were off-put was an understatement. How could he be so relaxed during a time such as this?

Much to your distress, your current predicament was drawing attention from the crowd and the man’s unique appearance wasn’t helping to diffuse the situation. 

Lifting his head, the man scanned his surroundings before standing to his full height, and boy was he tall.

From your perspective, the Italian man was at least six-foot six of pure muscle. 

' _I probably shouldn't have stolen from him...'_ You sweat-dropped. 

Looking back down at you, his eyes narrowed slightly, as if calculating his next move. 

“Will you continue to be defiant or will you return what is mine?” Once again, he reached towards you, his gaze fixed on the hidden cross. You opened and closed your mouth like a washed-up fish stuck on land. Unable to find the right words to appease him, you instead fixed him with a nasty glare. The two of you exchanged heated looks before you eventually glanced away, frightened by his unwavering gaze. 

“I’m sorry--” But before you could get a word in, you heard the shrill cries of a siren. Snapping up to look at the streets, you found a cop car gaining distance on you. Someone must have noticed the odd situation and called the police on you. This was the one thing you were hoping to avoid, but you weren’t as lucky as others. 

“ _Merda._ ” You cursed under your breath.

Hopping to your feet, you anxiously looked for an opening. 

As if on cue, the man took a step towards you. Noticing your change in stance, he retracted his hand and sighed. 

“Do what you will with it, but if you ever attempt to steal from me again, you will no longer have hands to use.” The man pulled away from you, disappearing the minute he retreated into the crowd. 

Taking the opportunity, you scampered away from the officers and hastily made your way back to your shelter. 

You hesitantly fished out the cross from your pocket, holding it up to the sun. The light glinted off the reflective surface, casting a golden hue your way. It truly was a work of art. The deep engravings only made the piece more beautiful. It was a shame that you’d be giving it away for a small sum of food. 

You traced the outline of the piece, marveling at its beauty, until you felt a slight gap at the hilt of the object. Using your nail, you ran your finger across the fine line until the end of the cross popped off. The loud clang from the fallen object caused you to jump back in surprise, almost dropping the crucifix into the drain next to you. 

You placed your hand on your beating heart to calm it before inspecting the cross once again. Much to your surprise, the necklace was anything but an ornament. In fact, it was a weapon. 

You held the dagger to the sun, watching as the sharp tip glinted menacingly down at you.

While gazing at the object in awe, you couldn’t help but wonder why the man would have this on him. Was it a method of self-protection?

Looking back, this tiny dagger wouldn’t have been of much use in a proper fight. At best, it was a letter opener. 

You slid the dagger back into its sheath and placed the weapon next to you. You had no idea what to even do with it. To give it away would simply be a shame, but at the same time, you were in no position to be passing up the opportunity to gain a few coins. 

After much deliberation--and yanking half your hair out--you came to the decision that you’d return it. You didn’t know what pushed you to decide this, but you knew that you were resolute in your decision. Perhaps it was the man's kindness, if you could even call it kindness, considering he threatened to cut your arms off. Either way, you couldn’t find it in yourself to sell a trinket so exquisite. 

  
_________________

The following days, you rationed your bread and water, making sure you had enough to survive the week. During the day, you’d scour the streets, looking for the familiar victorian style cloak. At night, you’d huddle in your shoddy shelter and wipe the grime from the cross, gazing upon the ornament with awe.

As the days trickled by and the weather became colder, you were finding it difficult to motivate yourself to find him. Your rations were running thin and the chill was getting to you. You could barely think, much less move. 

On a particularly freezing day, to your absolute horror, you realized you ran out of food. And if you thought things couldn’t get worse, well then, you were absolutely wrong. 

The man was nowhere to be found and you were stuck in an alley, surrounded by a band of rag-tag thugs. The leader of the group, an overweight man in his late thirties, gave the cross in your hand a nice, long look. 

“Let’s make things easy. Why don’t you hand that pretty little cross over here and we’ll let you leave. How ‘bout that?” You clutched the cross even tighter, all the while tossing each thug a vicious glare. 

“No.” You growled at them. 

“Do you think you have a choice?” He snapped back. “Little girls like you are in no position to refuse men like me. So let’s do this again.” He cracked his knuckles threateningly. The men around him, understanding the predicament they were in, decided to join in on the ruse.

They creeped closer to you, each one of them adorning a feral grin. 

“Hand it over, nice and easy, or else things will get nasty for you, little girl.” One of the men spat out. 

“No.” You repeated, only this time, a little louder for the rest to hear. 

The leader of the group snarled angrily before stomping over to your position. His meaty hand made a swing for you. Thankfully, it was easy enough to tell what he was going for, so you dodged his attack and whipped out your shiv. 

“Do you see this, boys? The street rat wants to fight.” The leader howled, tossing his head back to let out a throaty laugh. Once finished, he fixed you with a glare and nodded towards his men. “Bad decision. Get her, boys.” 

At once, the men were upon you like feral wolves. You gripped your shiv tightly and lunged for one of them, slashing him on the arm. The male hopped away and back-handed you, sending your shiv flying through the air. Realizing that you were completely unguarded, they kicked and slashed at every opportunity they could find, laughing in glee when you whimpered and pleaded. One of the boys grabbed your arms while another started openly searching your body for the cross. Upon finding it, they pulled back and handed it to their boss. The boy holding your arms released you, but not before delivering a blow to your middle. You wheezed at the hit and clutched your stomach, coughing and sputtering on the filthy ground. 

‘This is it, isn’t it?” You wondered, your vision fading out. 

The leader sauntered over to where you were writhing in pain and kneeled down, grabbing a fistful of your hair. 

“Don’t say I didn’t give you a choice, street rat.” He lifted his foot over your head to finish you off.

In the distance, you could hear the other boys taunting you.

Perhaps you deserved this… Perhaps you should have sold off the cross when you had the chance.

Submitting to your fate, you curled up in a fetal position and squeezed your eyes shut. 

“ _Ciao_ , little girl--” Before the leader could finish his words, you heard a sudden commotion behind him. The man set his foot down and glanced towards his men. 

“Hey, what’s going on here?” He growled impatiently. 

You hesitantly cracked your eyes open, focusing on the massive figure before the men. It was the man you had stolen from. You felt your heart rate accelerate at his sight. You knew not if it was from relief or fear. Regardless, his appearance had saved you from a pitiful fate. 

“Look man, we’re busy here. Fuck off.” The leader pressed his finger against the man’s chest, as if to push him away. Much to his chagrin, he stayed planted to his spot.

The tall Italian grabbed the leader by his wrist and lifted him into the air before sending him flying. The man hit the nearby wall with a sickening thud before falling to the ground like a sack of potatoes. He remained motionless, likely unconscious from the impact. You felt the terrifying ping of fear course through your veins. The fact that he could overpower a man easily over two hundred pounds was horrifying. 

You grimaced slightly as you pushed yourself up, attempting to get a clearer picture of what was happening. The tall man easily dispatched of the lackeys. The ones who weren’t taken care of fled the area, clearly terrified of him. 

Once he was finished wiping away the blood and filth, he fixed you with a cold stare. His hawk-like eyes never left your trembling form. They roved over the injuries littering your body before settling down on your petrified gaze. Now that the adrenaline had left your body, you were shivering and crying out in pain. You felt as if your head had split open from the abuse it received and your body was practically numb from the cold. 

“Why are you here?” You meekly coughed out. The man wordlessly picked up his cross from the leader’s pocket and examined it. 

At this point, you didn’t care why he was here. The thing of value was his presence, his intentions weren’t important when you were bleeding out on a filthy alley. 

“You should have aimed for his carotid artery.” He motioned to the discarded shiv at the end of the alley. 

“Excuse me?” You were confused, to say the least. He slipped the necklace into his pocket before redirecting his gaze back to you. 

“The boy you slashed. You should have gone for a vital point.” He stated, matter of factly. You looked up at the man hesitantly, afraid to meet his gaze. 

“I don’t enjoy violence.” Just the thought of slashing that boy was enough to send waves of guilt washing through you. 

“They could have killed you.” You nodded solemnly at his comment. 

“I know.”

The only indication of his surprise was the lifting of his brows. 

Before leaving he readjusted his coat and gave you one last parting glance. “You didn’t sell the cross. Why?” 

You slowly stood up, holding onto the wall for support. Looking up at the man, you felt a warmness envelop you. 

“I thought that it might be special to you.” You whispered under your breath. It was already painful to speak at a normal volume, so you opted to whisper.

Having noticed your discomfort, the man raised his hand to stop you, as if he knew what you were going to say next. 

Without uttering another word, he dropped a wad of cash and walked off. You gazed at it in confusion.

' _Why would he leave you this after you stole his necklace? Was it some sort of misplaced compassion?_ '

You took it without a second thought. His intentions didn’t matter to you. Not when you were on the brink of death. 

You made the quick decision to go after him. You didn’t know what prompted you to do so, but you felt that if you didn’t, you would regret it.

Quickly gathering your shiv and the cash, you raced to follow him. He wasn’t that far ahead of you, which made it easy to catch up. The only problem was that you were limping on the street, blood dribbling from your open wounds. The other pedestrians were horrified, some pointing out at your ragged appearance. Others simply swerved by you, desperate to leave the haggard girl alone. The tall Italian man, on the other hand, made no move to leave you behind. He simply looked straight ahead and continued on his path. 

“Why do you follow me, girl?” He asked, his gaze never wandering to you. “I would think the cash is enough to solve your problems.”

You bit your lip and nervously wrung your wrists. 

“I don’t know...” You glanced away, unsure of what to say next.

You had no excuse to give him. The truth was, you just wanted to follow him. Being around his presence made you feel safe, for some unknown reason. You felt untouchable.

“Do you not have family?” The inquiry rocked you to your core. It was a question that was often asked, but one you couldn’t answer. You had no friends, no family, and no one to trust. Looking down at your feet in solemnity, you shook your head. 

“I see.” It was then that the conversation ended. The man had no intention of entertaining you further. You stared at his broad back, marveling at the elegant way he walked. It was as if he commanded the very streets you were on. His presence alone attracted the eyes of people passing by. You wondered what his life was like. What did he do? What was he like? Did your presence bother him?

You continued to follow him until he stopped at what appeared to be a hotel. He entered it without sparing you another glance. Unable to follow him any longer, you instead chose to squat by the entrance, earning a few scathing looks from civilians passing by. It was likely that they didn’t want a smelly, scraggly girl in their line of view. 

You wondered why you were sitting here. At this point, you could have mended your injuries and bought yourself a warm meal. Why were you waiting for him? It was likely that he’d leave you behind, never to be seen again. And yet, you still wanted to be by him. Perhaps it was because he’d defended you from the thugs, despite the fact that you had stolen from him. 

_________________

When you woke in the morning, you were shivering, but not all that cold. Looking down, you saw several blankets wrapped around your frail form. They smelled like comfort and security, just like the tall man. Waiting a while, you saw the Italian man step out of the hotel. His gaze met yours almost immediately. As soon as they met, you knew. You knew he was the one who had provided you the blankets. A warm feeling blossomed in your chest again. 

What was that unfamiliar feeling? Were you dying? When has anyone done that for you?

Certainly not the caretakers at your former home. 

He walked off, leaving you to fend for yourself in front of the building. You followed after him curiously, watching as he stopped by several stores. You knew that the man was aware of your presence, but you didn’t know why he didn’t tell you off. Wasn’t he annoyed by you? That made you all the more curious about him. 

_________________

For the next couple of days, you followed him back and forth. He provided you food whenever he stopped by a bakery or restaurant, which only added to your growing confusion.

Then, one day, he stopped and looked at you.

It had been a while since he had done that, so you were shocked. You averted your gaze nervously, afraid of what he was going to say. 

“What is your name?” The question had caught you off guard. It was so out of the blue, that it shocked you speechless. You had expected him to tell you off for being a nuisance. 

“Y/n.” You answered quietly, your eyes looking up at him expectantly. 

“Last name?”

“I don’t have one.” You felt a pang of sadness wash over you. You belonged nowhere, to no one. The man hummed at your reply before turning away to continue with his business. 

The two of you stopped before a dark house. It was menacing, to say the least, but something about it was comforting. The large glass windows reflected your haggard appearance, as if to mock you. You felt out of place. Such a luxurious residence shouldn’t be sullied by someone like you. 

The man unlocked the front door and stepped in. He waited by the entrance, as if expecting something. When nothing happened, he glanced back and beckoned you forward. 

“Why do you linger there? Come.” Your eyes widened and glistened with the promise of tears. You must have been quite the sight to him, because a small smile graced his lips. 

You clutched the hem of your shirt tightly and bit down on your lip to prevent yourself from crying. To others, his response might have been confusing, but you knew exactly what it meant. Despite having been together for a few days, you were already acclimated to his dry responses. His invitation wasn’t freely given, nor was his generosity. Somehow, somewhere, you had garnered his acceptance. 

“Why?” You blurted, “I’ve just been an annoyance to you.” 

The man’s eyes narrowed on you, the golden hues blazing with an unknown emotion. 

“Do I need a reason to invite someone to my house?” You shook your head at his answer. The man stepped into his home and hung up his coat, shaking out the remnants of snow that clung to his attire. Before disappearing within the halls of his home, he turned to look back at you, golden eyes gleaming. 

“You remind me of when I was younger.” Wordlessly, he left the entrance, leaving you to stew in your thoughts.

The first step into his house would change everything. Could you really trust him? Would he abandon you someday? If he did, would you be able to survive on the streets? Did he have some type of malicious intent?

You pinched your arm and shook your head. No, he didn’t look to be the type of man who would do that. 

Hesitantly, you took your shoes off and entered. 

You weren’t in any place to deny his kindness. That said, you also had nothing holding you back. If he wanted to do something devious, you’d have no choice but to take it. 

Placing your small foot on the floor, you felt the deep ingrains and pathways of the wood. It felt foreign and weird. The inside of the house was warm and gave you a sense of solace, almost immediately lulling you into a state of sleep. 

That first step changed your entire life. 

_________________

From there on, you learned that the Italian’s name was Dracule Mihawk, a man who owned a wine business in several countries. To say he was successful and living in comfort was an understatement. Much to your surprise and your utter delight, he hadn’t abandoned you within the first weeks. In fact, Mihawk had taken you under his wing, providing an education and a level of comfort that you had never even dreamed of before. You didn’t quite understand your dynamic with him, but you compared it to that of a father and daughter. He had another child under his care, Perona, who was quite the personality. Bright and bubbly, she helped open your eyes to the brighter aspects of your childhood. She had her odd moments and her weirder side, but you loved it nevertheless. 

At the young age of ten, you were just Y/n, but after you were taken in by Mihawk, you finally adopted the name Dracule, Y/n. 

It was only a little later did you meet a boy with unkempt black hair and eyes full of life and excitement. During this time of recuperation and experiences, you met your best friend, Monkey D. Luffy.


	2. Double Trouble

You were twelve when you first met Luffy. Having moved from Venice to Sicily, you were shocked by the change. From living in a city over the water, you were suddenly living in a mansion overlooking the clear blue sea. It was beautiful, nonetheless. 

You recalled the exact day you met the snot-nosed brat. It was a hot day in June. The cicadas were chirping their tune and the civilians were idly enjoying their time in the sun. Many tourists stopped by to enjoy the inherent beauty within the area, taking in the sights and smells. Unlike the pedestrians outside, you were cooped up in your room, playing with a toy robot. Perona had gone out to do questionable things while you were stuck in the house. Mihawk didn’t place very many restrictions on you, but when he was around, he preferred you to be within his line of sight, or at the very least, near him. Call it protective instincts, but his memory of you curled up and crying in the alley put him in a foul mood. 

While you were lounging in your room, you heard the doorbell ring. Soon after, you could hear muffled voices speaking through the walls.

Toy robot clutched in your arm, you skipped out of your room and made your way downstairs, peeking over the banister to the three individuals below. There was a man with a shock of red hair that swung past his eyes. Complimenting his rugged, laid-back style was three distinctive scars running over his eyes. 

‘ _Perhaps he had a bad run in with a cat,’_ You silently thought to yourself. Besides the red-haired man was a lanky, if not odd-looking boy. He had a mop of black hair atop his head and large, round eyes that peered back up at you. Beneath his left eye was a curved scar, not unlike the one the red-haired man doned. 

“Who’s that, Shanks?” The boy asked nonchalantly, his pinkie shoved deep into his nostril. 

“I’m Y/n,” You hopped down the stairs to stand in front of the boy, “Nice to meet you.” You extended your hand towards him, expecting him to return it. Instead, he flicked a booger away and gave you a thousand watt smile. 

“You speak good english!” 

You cocked your head to the side quizzically. 

“Italian is my native language, but Mihawk wanted me to learn english.”

Once again the boy stuck his finger into his nose, wriggling it around a little. He was already bored of your conversation, judging by the way his eyes were wandering around the room. Despite his indifferent attitude, you were still captivated by the small boy. He was a bounding, energetic ball of charisma that you couldn’t help but be drawn to.

“Really? That’s cool. Anyways, I’m Monkey D. Luffy!” The boy bounded to your side and gave you several hearty slaps on the back. You recoiled from the sudden movement, your fight-or-flight instincts kicking in. 

After giving yourself time to recover from the anxiety-ridden attack, you returned his wide smile.

Mihawk watched the exchange with wary eyes before sighing in exhaustion. 

“That boy of yours is trouble.” Shanks laughed out loud at Mihawk’s comment before fixing his warm gaze your way. 

“That’s one way to put it.” Mihawk visibly rolled his eyes at his comment. 

“Now, who might you be? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.” The red-haired man crouched down and enveloped your small hand into his, shaking it lightly. You immediately relaxed at his touch. 

Deep down, you knew he was someone you could trust. 

“She’s my daughter.” Shanks shot Mihawk a surprised look, but it was immediately replaced with a bright smile, one eerily similar to Luffy’s.

“Is that so? The last time I saw you was a couple years back, but at the time, you only had Perona. Where did he pick you up from?” 

Mihawk narrowed his eyes at the question, but made no attempt to answer it. 

“I suppose it doesn’t matter. I’m just glad to have met you, Y/n. I do hope Luffy doesn’t drag you into one of his troubles.” 

After exchanging a few words with the odd red-haired man, you bid him goodbye, watching as he dragged Mihawk further into the house. 

“Now, where’s the booze?” Mihawk sighed loudly at the other’s question. The two then slinked away, exchanging recent exploits and matters of interest. 

You glanced back at the lanky boy who was now wiping his booger on his shirt. He was dressed in a pair of bright red shorts and a yellow muscle tee. Luffy gazed up at you, his eyes blinking adorably. 

“Is that your robot?” He asked quizzically, “It looks awesome. Can I hold it?” 

Before you even had the chance to answer, Luffy plucked the toy from your hands. Within minutes, he got bored of the robot, discarding it to the side before dragging you outside. You didn’t mind him playing with your toys, but you did mind going outside. It was hot and you were in no mood to be baking in the sun along with this pea-for-brains idiot. Yet, despite his brusque personality, you found him adorable and quite easy to get along with. So, staying mad at him was difficult. 

“Is Shanks your dad?” You asked, all the while flicking small pebbles towards the pond in front of your house. 

“Nah, he’s my adoptive dad, just like yours. My real one is with my brother, Sabo.” Luffy shot back nonchalantly. 

“Why wouldn’t your real dad be with you?” Luffy shrugged at your question without giving it a second thought. He then stood up and walked over to a patch of grass under a large tree. You wordlessly followed, plopping down on the available spot next to him. 

Once you had the opportunity to go outside, you finally had the chance to enjoy the serene nature of Sicily. The wind was calm and cool, allowing a passage of air to glide through your shirt, instantly chilling your overheated body. The sky above was devoid of clouds and shone brightly beneath the harsh glare of the sun. 

“What’s your brother like?” At your question, the other perked up, his eyes glistening with excitement. 

At once, he launched into a marvelous story, his arms waving in front of his face, casting shadows over the two of you. 

Luffy was the youngest of the ‘trio’, something you had recently learned. Portgas D. Ace had been the eldest of the three and he was currently living with his father, Edward Newgate. Sabo, on the other hand, resided with Monkey D. Dragon, Luffy’s biological parent. You learned that the three had lived together for a short time before splitting, each moving to different states in the U.S, a place you dreamed to visit, especially Luffy’s home, New York. Ace and Sabo, being three years older than their sibling, always left him out of their plans, but he didn’t mind it much, seeing as he was always there to crash them. 

During your talk together, you noticed that the boy had a particular love for meat. A love for it was an understatement. Every three minutes into the conversation, he’d suddenly bring up the topic when a certain memory rose up. Then he’d start salivating like a blood-starved hound and run into the house, begging his father for a morsel. 

It was quite exciting listening to the stories he shared, especially the part when they commemorated their brotherhood with three cups of sake. 

You felt a squeeze of pain in your heart. Oh, how you wished Perona was like them. Sure, she’d play with you from time to time, but she found interest in other things. Perhaps it was because she was older than you… 

You had learned later that day, when you had time to sneak away from Luffy’s troublesome plans, that Shanks was here to stay. You knew not the reason, and it didn’t matter much to you, especially when you learned that your friend Luffy was planning to remain here a while longer. 

_________________

Over the summer break, you had plenty of fun with Luffy. The two of you loved to sneak away to the coves of Sicily, often getting yourself in trouble for putting the other in dangerous situations. Luffy especially loved to steal bits of roasted meat from the vendor, often getting himself in a pinch with the officers.

Whenever Shanks had to rescue him, you always found him with another knot on his head. On the hand, when Mihawk came, he would easily escape the situation. You knew not the reason, but you assumed it was because of Mihawk’s connections with some of the more influential individuals in the area. 

You remembered the time you dived into the water with Luffy, almost drowning when a large fish began tugging you down. Luffy had saved you, of course, but not before nearly drowning himself in the process. You learned that he used to be a great swimmer before a certain situation, but after the occurrence, he had lost the ability to do so.

Still unconscious from the time you were underwater, Luffy had to perform CPR in order to get the water out of your lungs. 

When you woke up, you were face to face with him, his chapped lips pressed tightly against yours. Luffy’s snot and tears were smeared onto your slick face, something that traumatized you to this day.

You began hacking and coughing the remaining water that still remained in you.

After your fit died down, you were surprised to find Luffy crying like an idiot on the side. The only thing that shocked you more than the fact that you almost died was the fact that he knew how to perform CPR. Perhaps he wasn’t as much of an idiot as you thought… or maybe he’d gotten himself into countless similar situations like yours…

After saving you, Luffy dove back in like the simpleton he was and killed the fish that had attempted to drown you. Of course, he hadn’t realized he couldn’t swim and nearly drowned, similarly to you. Ironically, you had to dive back in and save the moron who had, minutes before, saved another drowning idiot. 

After the two of you recovered from your life-or-death situation, Luffy began laughing his head off. He gave your back several hard slaps as he continued giggling.

Once he recuperated enough energy to stand, he held the fish over his head triumphantly. 

Despite all that occured, that was one of your favorite memories with him. 

That little scuffle had cost him a tooth or two when he began biting the fish’s hard exterior, but it was nothing compared to the prospect of getting to eat grilled fish. 

The two of you hid in one of the run-down Greek temples, roasting the gutted fish over a pathetic campfire. The two of you laughed at the trouble you had gotten into and promised the other that they wouldn’t rat it out to the adults. 

After fooling around for a couple more hours, the two of you fell asleep near the campfire. Luffy had to sleep on his back due to his distended stomach, but you were perfectly comfortable using his full belly as your pillow.

Despite the amount of times he got the two of you into trouble, you still allowed yourself to be reeled into his plots. It was the most fun you’ve ever had in your life and that was saying something.

Overtime, you had picked up Luffy’s horrible habit of picking his nose when he was forced in an uninteresting predicament. Mihawk was displeased by this new development, but made no comment on it. It was obvious that he thought Luffy was a bad influence on you, but Shanks often persuaded him that it was a good thing that you had a friend. 

As the days grew colder and Shank’s business had ended with Mihawk, you found yourself mulling in your room in sadness. You knew from the beginning that Luffy was going to return to New York, but you hadn’t given yourself enough time to prepare for it. 

A week before his departure, you found yourself in the tight clutches of Luffy. He had his cheeks pouted in defiance and his stance was rigid. It was clear that he had no intention of letting you go. 

“She’s my nakama!” He claimed rebelliously, “I’m not going home without her!” 

Mihawk’s eyebrow twitched in annoyance at the younger one’s claim. Shanks threw his head back and laughed out loud, but not before giving Luffy several hard pats on the back. “Now, now, you know that you can’t just drag Y/n wherever you want.”

“Who says I can’t? I’m not going back unless Y/n gets to come with me!” Luffy released the hold on you, but only to allow himself space to pick his nose. 

“I forbid it.” Mihawk added suddenly. You cringed at his cold tone, sure that you’d get a talking from him later.

Luffy continued picking his nose indifferently, his dark eyes fixed on Mihawk’s golden ones. The argument ended as soon as your father put his foot down on the topic, but that didn’t mean the little rascal would agree with it so easily.

Over the week, Luffy continued to claim that you were his ‘nakama’, as he called it and often barged into Mihawk’s office, going off on him. Shanks had to pull him from the desk several times, placing a large stick of meat in front of the boy to persuade him. Still, that alone wasn’t enough to calm the boy when his friendship with you was at stake… _no pun intended_. 

It was a warm Thursday night when the three family members sat silently at the dining table. Perona was picking at her food, clearly bothered by the lack of sweets. 

The two quickly began bickering about something. You tuned out and rested your head on your hand, thinking of all the adventures you had with Luffy.

In the distance, you heard someone ask you a question, but you paid no mind to it. As soon as Mihawk noticed your lack of response, he cleared his throat, directing his attention to the younger daughter. 

“Y/n, is something on your mind?” 

You shook off your daydreams and glanced up at Mihawk. 

“I-” You stopped suddenly, thinking of what to say next. Mihawk was a patient man, but he had his limits when it came to you. “I want to go…” You trailed off. 

Despite your vague response, your father knew exactly what you meant by that.

His lips grew thin and his eyes narrowed at your response. His disdain at your answer was evident and you were terrified to push further, but rather than giving up, you looked down at your balled fists and gathered the courage you needed.

“Mihawk, I want to go to New York with Luffy.” You felt a stinging pressure from where your nails were digging into the palm of your hands. Dark crescents moons littered the inside, creating small indents on the soft flesh. “I understand if you want me to stay here, but I really-- _really_ , want to go with him. I don’t have much here in the way of friends or interests.”

Glancing up at Mihawk, you saw that he had on an unreadable expression on. To say that is unnerved you was an understatement, but it was far better than his usual calm demeanor. That only spelled trouble. 

The man silently sliced a cube of meat and chewed on it. Perona, who was usually aloof to these situations, seemed to sense the unusual awkwardness in the air. She quickly stood up, thanked Mihawk for dinner, and ran off, likely to escape the toxic enviornment.

“I’ll think about it.” He finally stated. You smiled at his response, a giddy feeling of glee blossoming in your chest. 

_________________  
  


On the last day of his visit to Italy, Luffy never left your side, his clammy hand was secured tightly to yours. Mihawk seemed to be arguing about something with Shanks, because the two looked tense from where you were at. When they finally emerged from the office, Mihawk looked down at you. 

“You should pack your things, Y/n.” You jumped at his words. Was this a dream? Was he actually going to let you move with Luffy? 

You gave the scrawny boy a large smile, pulling him into a tight hug. He immediately reciprocated the action, crushing you to his small form. You felt the vibrations of his laughter through your body, instantly warming you. 

Luffy helped you gather your things, shoving whatever he could get his hands on in your small suitcase. Perona, on the other hand, was in tears. Shocked by the sudden turn of events, she suddenly regretted not hanging out with you more. 

After you finished packing your things, you bounded down the stairs with the energetic boy, stopping in front of Shanks. 

Both adults talked for a short while before the four of you got ready to leave. 

At the airport, you gave Perona one last hug before glancing towards your adoptive father. Thinking he was going to leave you there without saying a goodbye, you turned and started walking with Luffy.

“Y/n.” Mihawk’s voice was low, far more quiet than his usual tone. You didn’t need to turn around to know the face he was making. 

“Be careful.” 

You released Luffy’s hand and made your way to Mihawk, tightly gripping the side of his overcoat. His hand found his way into your hair and gave it a gentle ruffle, an action you enjoyed. It was rare for him to show physical affection, but when he did, you felt like the most loved person in the world. Large, fat tears slipped down your cheeks and dampened Mihawk’s expensive coat. 

“I will.” Your words were muffled against his clothing, but your father knew what you meant. Looking up at him, you saw a small smile painted on his lips. 

After saying goodbye to your family, you stepped onto Shank’s jet, getting yourself comfortable next to Luffy. He immediately started going down on his ‘mid-day’ snack, which consisted of a beef buffet. An hour into the flight, you were asleep on Luffy’s shoulder, snoring quietly as the boy excitedly watched a movie about robots. 

This was the start of your adventure with Luffy and his group of rag-tags.


	3. Summer heat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayooo, wassss poppin'.
> 
> I recommend listening to slowed songs bc they're superior. ;)

When you first met Ace and Sabo, it had been a couple weeks after your move to New York.

You were completely miserable. 

During your time here, you desperately missed Mihawk and Perona. On top of that, New York was excruciatingly hot and the culture was completely different from Sicily’s. The sights and smells overwhelmed you, as did the civilians. 

You occasionally went out with Luffy when he wasn’t busy doing his own thing and since the school year was about to start, you didn’t have much to do. 

It became abundantly obvious that Luffy was sneaking away to do only Pete knows what in his free time. Bored out of your mind and with nothing to do in Shank’s house, you decided to follow him. Before leaving, you brought your comfort blanket. The one Mihawk had given to you right before your departure. It was a black fabric with designs not unlike the one’s on your father’s overcoat. The blanket had swirling red and pink patterns lined the inside, something you often traced when you were bored.

Where could Luffy possibly be going? Did he even have friends? Was there someone else he was meeting with?

Unable to satiate your curiosity any longer, you tip-toed after the lanky boy, hiding behind buildings to conceal your presence, not that you had to do it, mind you, the boy was completely oblivious.

After several skips and turns, you found yourself staring at Luffy’s back. He was stopped in front of a small ledge, one he was able to easily hop down from. 

Judging from your surroundings, you were far away from the nicer part of New York City. Dirty alleys and shodden apartments with a few stray cats here and there were a far cry from Shank’s area. You heard the occasional cough from the smokers and the creaks and groans of old, decrepit houses. It was abundantly clear that Luffy wasn’t here alone. If he had, you’d certainly be concerned for him.

What was he doing in such a bad part of town?

You felt as if your heart was going to burst from your chest at any given moment. This place was eerily similar to the one back in Venice… Back when you were still a homeless orphan. 

You balled your fists in anticipation and prepared yourself for the worst. Swallowing the building fear, you pushed on, peering over the ledge Luffy had disappeared from. Below was an area you hadn’t expected to exist, seeing as how it looked like a dead end. There was a hastily built shed with what appeared to be a kitchen and a bedroom. Of course, there was no denying that it was built by children, but still, it was an impressive feat. With a makeshift oven made from junk and a bedroom with tattered futons, it was easy to tell that one could live here for a while. 

You glanced towards the area where the voices were emanating from and saw Luffy discussing something with a taller, much older boy. He was a blonde fellow with a crooked smile and large dark eyes that were framed by thin, arched brows. Unlike Luffy, he was dressed quite elegantly. The boy was adorned in a victorian, steam-punk style outfit with goggles to match the rest of his attire. 

Trying to get closer to hear their conversation, you accidentally caught the seam of your shirt on a discarded piece of glass. The two misfits glanced up to where they heard the sound, both of their eyes widened in perfect synchrony. 

“Who are you?” The blonde boy snapped, all the while threateningly pointing the end of his pole your way.

“Sabo! That’s the nakama I was talking about!” Luffy glanced back at you and smiled brightly. “Actually, now that she’s here, can she join our pact?” 

“Why are you making it sound like you knew she was going to come here, Luffy?” The blonde, who found out was Sabo, asked accusingly. He pressed his finger against Luffy’s chest. 

“I didn’t know she was coming, that was purely condence!” Luffy chimed.

"Condence? Do you mean, coincidence?"

"Yes! Coin-si-dance!"

Sabo shook his head at his brother, but made no further comment on his idiocy.

“It’s not a coincidence, you idiot! She clearly followed you here!” Sabo back-handed Luffy’s neck, to which the ravenette howled in pain, clutching his sore nape. 

“So, why are you here?” Sabo crossed his arms and mustered the best glare he could. 

You looked between the two boys, attempting to determine what kind of relationship they had. 

“I followed Luf--” Yet, before you could even finish your sentence, another voice abruptly interrupted your own. 

“Yo, Sabo, what’s the problem?”

Surprised by the voice that came directly under, you slipped on your blanket and lost your balance, quickly tumbling over the ledge. Bracing yourself for impact, you squeezed your eyes shut and expected the worst. Instead of cold cement welcoming you into its embrace, you felt a warm, yet oddly bumpy surface. 

‘ _Huh, that wasn’t half as bad as I thought it’d be. I must be fairly resilient!_ ’ 

You placed your hand down to help yourself up until you heard a guttural groan from under you. Skidding back in shock, you found yourself face to face with a freckled boy. His expression was a mask of pain and anger. His pinched lips were fixed in a nasty snarl and bits of his ebony hair fell over drawn brows, covering his eyes. 

“What the hell!” He blurted in barely concealed rage, his tan hand moving to clutch at his chest.

“Ace!” The two other boys yelled at the same time.

‘ _Oh, so that’s Ace. Oops_.’ You flinched at his dark glare, unable to make eye contact. 

Both Luffy and Sabo ran to Ace’s side, helping their fallen comrade up. As soon as he was able to support himself, the ravenette stomped over to your side and lifted you up by the collar of your shirt. His hot breath fanned over your face as he held himself back from yelling at you. 

“Who the hell are you? How did you get here?” Ace growled under his breath, his face growing closer with each passing second. 

“Let go of her, Ace! That’s my friend!” Luffy tore you from the boy’s grip and stood in front of you, going into a protective stance.

“She’s the girl that came with you from Italy?” Sabo quizzically asked. Luffy nodded quickly, his eyes flitting between both brothers. As soon as he got the confirmation he needed, Sabo switched modes quickly. Moving from a defensive position to a friendly one, he extended his unarmed hand to you. 

“Well then, any friend of Luffy is a friend of mine, considering he doesn’t have many.” He murmured that last part as an after-thought. 

“Hey!” Sabo laughed at Luffy’s outburst before refocusing on the angrier sibling. 

Ace was fuming in the corner, his dark eyes never leaving your trembling form. 

“Luffy…” The boy lowly hissed, “How the hell did she find our hideout?”

Luffy glanced away nervously and whistled suspiciously. 

“It’s obvious he wasn’t checking his surroundings.” Sabo shrugged, “Nothing we can do about it.”

“The hell we can’t.” The ravenette raised his pole. “There’s only one thing we can do.” 

Sabo glanced nervously between the two of you, sweat visibly running down his temple. 

“Wa-wait, we can talk about this, Ace.” 

“There’s nothing to talk about. We have to kill her.” He stated, as if it were the easiest thing to do. 

Your hand immediately went for your pocket, searching for any sort of weapon. Realizing that you were defenseless, you went straight into fight-or-flight mode. Call it instinct, but you were still as sharp as the girl you were two years ago. When you realized you were in no position to be fighting back against two older boys, you gave up. 

“Wait a minute, Sabo’s right, let’s talk about this.” You yelped, your hands raised above your head in surrender. 

“I can’t kill her!” Sabo exclaimed.

At this point, Luffy was bawling his eyes out while clutching the hem of Sabo’s coat. Ace was in a defensive stance as he pointed the sharper end of his pipe your way. The blonde, on the other hand, was nervously determining what to do.

“We-well, I can’t kill her either. You do it!” 

The two, realizing that they couldn’t commit the heinous crime, gathered and whispered in hushed tones. Ace pinched Luffy’s cheeks to stop the flow of tears before slapping the back of Sabo’s head. 

Leaning in, you could hear snippets of their conversation. It mostly composed of,

“--what do we do with her--” 

“--Luffy’s an idiot--” 

“--make her promise--”

Upon reaching their conclusion, the trio turned your way, all of them donning a different expression. Ace had his arms crossed while the other two were nervously squirming in their spot. 

Despite the stories Luffy told you of his brothers, you couldn’t help but wonder if he was exaggerating. Ace was nothing like how he was described in the renditions. 

Though, you had to admit, Sabo was similar to Luffy’s tales. He was calm, sensible, and friendly, while Ace was the polar opposite. 

You stood in your spot and glared right back at the ravenette, your cheeks puffed out in defiance. 

“I just wanted to see what Luffy was doing out here... And when I found out he was meeting with his brothers, I wanted to know what the brothers were like and I’m disappointed to say, Sabo is the only one who exceeded my expectations.” 

“Luffy talked about us?” Sabo guffawed at your comment, delight evident on his face. You nodded in glee, recalling the memories you shared with him in Italy. Once you remembered the situation you were in, you glared right back at Ace. 

“What did you say?” The ravenette leveled with you, his face mirroring your own--pure anger.

“I said--” You pressed the palm of your hand to his chest, pushing his back, “Sabo is better than you.” 

“Let’s stop this stupid argument and come to terms like adults.” Sabo broke between the two of you and separated you by his pole. 

After a long, intense stare down, Ace back downed, but not before sneering at you. Sabo released an exasperated sigh, already tired of the boy’s antics. Luffy, on the other end of the shed, had already forgotten the argument and began smiling widely. 

“Fine, but if you even whisper a word of this place to anyone, I’ll come for you.” 

You leered back at the boy before retorting, “I don’t think anyone would be interested in this place anyways.” 

Ace mockingly made a face at you, knowing full well he had lost to that particular comeback. “You’re a brat, do you know that?” 

“And you’re a jerk. I can’t believe Luffy’s even brothers with you.” 

“I can’t believe he’s even friends with you.” He mockingly added.

The both of you grabbed the other’s collar, exchanging heated scowls. 

“Are you guys done? I’m hungry and I can smell meat somewhere.” Luffy whined. 

“Yeah, we’ll go as soon as this girl leaves us alone.”

Luffy jumped up from his spot and shook his head. “She’s coming with us!” 

“Ace, let this go. We can let her come with us just this time.” Sabo separated the two of you once again, only this time, he held Ace back. 

Another tense minute passed before Ace reluctantly accepted the terms. 

“Phew, now that that’s over with--,” Sabo extended his hand to you, “What was your name?” 

_________________

Despite Ace’s constant nagging and squabbling, you had been accepted into the trio--or duo. Sabo opened up within the first few days, showing off his latest gadgets and junk. You grew close almost instantly, always sneaking away to poke fun at Ace’s various moods. 

No matter how many times you stumbled into the eldest ravenette, he never dropped his guard. Ever the competitive one, Ace always created newer and dumber challenges to trip you up. The time of day never mattered. He’d even, occasionally sneak into the shared room you had with Luffy to pull a prank on you. 

You recalled the time he’d dipped all the onions into caramel and left them in a gift basket addressed to you or the time he stirred the mac-n-cheese mix into the orange juice. Of course, Luffy was also the butt of the joke for that one, but Ace thought your reaction was funny enough to erase the guilt of pranking his younger brother. 

Once you became fed up from his relentless teasing, you decided to give him a taste of his own medicine. Unfortunately, your prank had failed epicly. 

When Sabo brought you over to Ace’s place, you began concocting your plan. Having bought nair from the nearest convenience store, you snuck into the ravenette’s bathroom and replaced his shampoo with yours. As soon as you finished switching the two, you ran to the door and yanked it open, ready to return to the blonde. 

Just when you thought you were safe, you bumped straight into a hard chest. Looking up, you saw your reflection through large, surprised orbs. Ace was staring at you in utter shock, his mouth a small ‘o’. That quickly changed to a twisted scowl when he realized who you were. 

You swallowed the lump of nervousness down and gave him a weak, but unconvincing smile. It was so painfully clear that you had done something suspicious in his bathroom. 

After the two of you shared a moment of silence, you grew red in embarrassment. 

Ace was completely naked, save for the towel slung over his shoulder. 

“Wh-Why the hell are you naked?” You blurted out, covering your eyes the instant they traveled down. 

“Because I’m going to take my shower, you pervert!” Ace yelled back, his voice shaking in humiliation, “Why are you here?!” 

“I--” You sealed your lips shut, “That’s not important! The real question is, why do you strip in your room instead of the bathroom? Are you crazy, anyone could walk in!” 

Ace guffawed at your comment. 

“Are you kidding me? No one’s going to burst into my room except a crazy, deluded, peeper like you!” 

“Peeper?! I’m not a peeper, I was just…” You bit your lip to prevent yourself from spilling your plan. 

“You’re a peeper and you know it, peep. You’re the only girl here! Of course, I can’t blame you for wanting to see my rock hard abs.” 

‘ _Abs? More like skin and bones._ ’ You discarded the thought from your mind. 

“A-Anyways, I’m leaving!” Without giving the boy another second, you split from his room, sprinting down the corridor to where Sabo and Luffy were lazily munching on chips. You didn’t even spare him a second glance as soon as you left, instead opting to go to the nearest bathroom and bleach your eyes out. 

This had been the second time you were traumatized by the trio of brothers. The first being Luffy’s snot and tears smeared on your face. 

Once you left the house with Luffy, both you and Ace decided to act as if the whole scenario had never happened. Despite the silence, it was abundantly clear to the other two that something had gone down. Your averted gazes and sweat-slicked complexions were tell-tale signs of suspicious activity. 

You later found out that Ace had discarded all of his lotions, including your bottle of Nair. No hair was lost that day… 

Luckily, both Luffy and Sabo lost interest and soon as the two of you began your bickering again. 

Regrettably, from that day forward, you were branded the horrible nickname ‘Peep’ or ‘Peep Peep’, when Ace felt extra annoyed by you. 

_________________

  
  


The first few weeks were spent with Luffy and Sabo, the three of you exploring every nook and cranny in New York City. The trio mostly fished for junk to build upon the small hideout. Ace never helped you, of course, but he visited the two whenever you weren't there. On the off chance that you were, the ravenette always tried his best to split you up from his other brothers. Whether that be outrunning you on a parkour-like maze or pushing you into a dumpster, he never gave up on attempting to ditch you. 

Needless to say, as soon as the school year started, both Sabo and Ace returned to their home states to attend their businesses. You were left with Luffy, the two of you dejected from Sabo’s abrupt disappearance. Of course, Luffy missed his eldest brother, but you couldn’t quite share the same sentiment with him. 

In the days preceding their departure, you were peacocking around in absolute delight as you enjoyed your Ace-free life. No more pranks, no more stupid nick-names, and most of all, no more back-talk!

_________________

  
  


For the next few years, you spent your summers lazing about with the trio whenever they visited. Both Newgate and Dragon always dropped their sons’ off at Shanks’ house during the summer to free their hands of the rascals. To Luffy, the hot, blazing summer was always his favorite time of the season, because it was the time he could spend with his brothers. To you, it was bittersweet, but the worst part was probably the beginning.

At first, Ace hadn't bothered interacting with you, but as the years progressed, he started a little tradition with you. He liked to call it, 'summer bummer, tackle game'. It mainly composed of him tackling you to the floor and sumo wrestling the shit out of you when you were least expecting it. 

It first started when you on a particularly hot summer morning. You were lounging lazily in the living room when you heard several sharp knocks on the door. Glancing to the clock, you realized it was exactly twelve in the afternoon. Wondering who it was, you slinked to the door and peeked through the peephole. When there was no one there, you shrugged to yourself.

Confused, you look away.

Before you could continue with what you were doing before, you heard another slew of knocks. Annoyed, you yanked the door open, only to be met with empty air. 

Shouting, you asked, "Who's there?" When you didn't get a response, you slammed the door shut and locked it. 

Returning to your cool spot on the couch, you failed to notice the unlatched window in the dining hall. You swerved around when you heard the telltale crash of glass and a loud 'thunk' as something hit the ground. 

As soon as you were able to grasp the situation, something slammed into your mid-section, sending you tumbling to the floor.

A weak wheeze croaked out of your mouth. 

Now you were disoriented, pissed, and confused. What exactly was going on here? 

When your eyesight returned to you, the first thing you saw was a mass of freckles and a shit-eating smirk. 

"You snooze, you lose, Peep." The male laughed down at you. 

Before you could respond, the male, who was very clearly Ace, began tickling you silly. When you recovered enough to able to fight back, the then got serious, tackling you to the ground several more times. You reciprocated the action, getting a few hits when you could, your head pressed against his mid, pushing with all your strength. His arms were wrapped around your waist, attempting to keep you in place, but that only worked for a while. 

Unfortunately, against a boy who was taller, older, and stronger than you, you couldn't last very long, try as you may. 

When it was clear he had one, Ace made sure Luffy wrote down his victory. 

_1 Ace - 0_ Y/n.

The boy was breathing heavily, his hands resting on his thighs as he stared up at you from his bent position. He lifted his shirt and wiped away the rivulets of sweat that dropped down his collar. You got a good glimpse of his mid-riff at his action, something you now wished you had avoided. Noticing where your eyes were, Ace smirked, his brow lifted.

"Got a good look, Peep? 'Cuz its not happening again." 

You grimaced at him, making sure Ace got a nice, long look of your middle finger. 

You bent over to catch your breath, inhaling large gulps of air to build up your energy once more. 

Sabo was standing back, laughing along with Luffy at the two of you. 

"Shanks isn't going to be happy about the glass." Sabo commented, gesturing towards the broken window. 

"Who cares, the old geezer had plenty of money." Ace shrugged. 

"Touche." 

Though you had no idea what just happened, you began laughing. Ace looked over at you and then back to his brothers, joining in on the laughter. 

Soon, the 'summer bummer, tackle game' became a tradition between the two of you, whether you liked it or not. As soon as the school year ended and summer break started, you always kept your eyes peeled for the brothers. The boys would always appear at 12' sharp, always finding a new and unique way to enter the house. It was their goal to catch you off guard, so Ace had the opportunity to have the upper hand. Of course, you never won any of the matches, but that didn't mean you didn't try. By the time the boys started high school, your tally was 14-1. The only time you'd ever won was by accident. While wrestling near a lake, you accidentally tripped over a stone just as Ace threw himself to you. Luckily, he'd passed right over you and face first into the water. He never forgot about that and made sure to get back at you later, but the other brothers found it quite hilarious. 

Summer break wasn't necessarily the only time Ace played the game. It honestly depended on the situation. That said, he'd never grown out of the game, even when the two of your were adults...

_________________

During the times you hung out with the brothers, you often had fun just being in their presence. You enjoyed exploring the newer areas of New York with Sabo and Luffy, but you were bitter every time Ace made fun of you. No matter how many years passed, his beef with you had never ended, in fact, as each you of you grew older, the bickering seemed to get worse. You couldn’t quite explain why, but every time you saw Ace remotely naked, he would turn several shades of red and curse you out. That included the times when you went to the pool with the boys. Even if he was wearing his swim-trunks, he still pestered you with that stupid nick-name.

Was it a boy thing? 

It wasn't that you were actively trying to see him naked. It was on account of his idiocy that you happened to see him like that. 

Like the time he forgot your existence and walked into the living room with nothing but a towel and a toothbrush dangling from his lips. It was clear that he had a question for the brothers, but as soon as your gazes’ met, he had completely forgotten it. In surprise, his towel dropped and he gave everyone a glimpse of the blinding pickle. 

Both you and Sabo groaned in disgust, sealing your hands over your eyes. 

“Ace, you idiot! What’s the big idea?” Sabo retorted, motioning to the ravenette's crotch area.

“No one wants to see that, dickles.” That had been your clever nickname that came to you one night. You combined Ace’s personality with his freckles and came up with that gem.

Luffy, unlike the two grimacing next to him, seemed indifferent to it. He briefly glanced Ace’s way before redirecting his attention back to the cartoon playing on tv. 

To say that day went on merrily after that would be a lie. Ace called you a pervert while you relied on Sabo to defend your honor. 

  
  


Whenever you were alone with Ace, he’d attack you with a slew of stupid insults. Still, the name ‘Peep’ was actively used in each and every retort. 

Didn’t he tire of it?

You couldn’t blame him for using it, afterall, I mean, you never tired of calling him ‘dickles’. 

As Ace and Sabo grew, they frequented New York less and less. Perhaps it was because the jobs they had attained in their home areas. You knew high schoolers were busy with ‘adulting’, but you missed Sabo’s witty talk and his dynamic with Luffy. Despite their absence, your life at home was never boring. Luffy always seemed to get you into new trouble, no matter how many talks he got from Shanks. 

_________________

Unlike the ravenette though, there was someone else in your life who made things interesting. 

You grimaced thinking about the times you spent with him… and trust me, they weren’t enjoyable at all. 

It had been a cold day in fall when you met the unusual boy. You were fooling around with Luffy in your room, comparing each other's booger bubbles when you heard the doorbell ring. 

Luffy declared his victory before fleeing the area, shooting straight down the stairs to get the door ahead of you. You didn’t quite understand his need to turn everything into a competition, but you didn’t question it. Afterall, that was all part of Luffy’s charm. 

Behind the large oak door of Shank’s house was two individuals; a tall, blonde man with a cigarette dangling from his lips and a small, pasty boy. 

You were generally comfortable opening yourself around the brothers, but you knew nothing about these strangers that appeared at your front door. 

Since Luffy had told you stories about Sabo and Ace, you weren’t nervous when you first met them, but these people in front of you were a different story.

You felt like you needed to be on the defense around them, as if they had some sort of hidden intent. It wasn’t that you thought they were bad, but you often found it difficult to get along with new people. 

Noticing your rigid posture, the tall blonde shot you a toothy grin, his eyes squinting in the process. It was oddly... cute. You knew he was trying to reassure you that he wasn't there to hurt you, but you still couldn't quite find it in yourself to trust him just yet. Despite being at least twice Mihawk’s height, the blonde was nowhere near as intimidating. Though he had a weird taste in style, your instincts were telling you that he was a good person. 

Peering over Luffy’s shoulder, you were able to get a better look at the individual. Though his outfit was simple, it certainly stood out. Garbed head to toe in a heart dress shirt and pale pants, you’d have thought he was cupid himself if it weren’t for the black cloak of feathers draped over his shoulders. Under the red heart hoodie was a face that could only be described as the Joker’s. 

Shank’s appeared behind you almost immediately, his large form towering over yours. You froze in your spot in surprise before relaxing. It was only Shanks after all. 

Luffy seemed completely indifferent to the two strangers, his gaze roving over the taller boy in front of him. 

The blonde man introduced himself as Corazon, extending his lanky arm to Shanks. He gripped the man’s hand in a tight hold, shaking it firmly. 

“You must be Donquixote Rosinante.” 

Corazon nodded in affirmation, giving the man a large, painted smile. 

“Mihawk didn’t tell me your visit in great detail, only that you were leaving the boy in my stead.” 

Both you and Luffy glanced at Shanks, the two of you picking your noses simultaneously. Well, this wasn’t as interesting as you thought it was. 

The boy hidden within the feathers of Corazon’s cloak was fairly tall, but next to the giant, he looked like a dwarf. 

Dressed in a simple, black long sleeve shirt and white shorts, he didn’t stick out as much as his companion. Still, his speckled mushroom hat was quite the sight compared to Luffy’s straw hat. 

Despite your staring, the boy never even glanced your way. His gaze was fixed straight ahead of him, as if he didn’t even acknowledge your existence. 

Though you didn’t mind his rudeness, it did raise the hairs on the back of your neck. There was something dangerous gleaming in those dark eyes of his… something vaguely familiar. If the large bags under his orbs told you anything, it was that he was tormented by night terrors, similar to you. 

You’d found yourself with large panda eyes after a long night of tossing and turning. The memories of your past never quite left you. 

His eyes reminded you of the times you stared at yourself in the mirror when you were all alone in Italy. Devoid of life and happiness, with only one goal; the goal to survive. 

The two adults went off to discuss, leaving the lanky boy in Luffy’s care. Unlike your ravenette friend, you were content with staying back, observing the child from a distance. 

From the looks of it, he was a couple years your elder, around the same age as Ace and Sabo, but with the way he was acting, you’d think he was older. His expression was grim and his eyes were downcast, as if he wanted nothing to do with the two of you. 

Ignoring the growing tension in the air, Luffy called out to the other ravenette, pushing his hand in front of his face. 

“I’m Monkey D. Luffy and this is my nakama, Y/n.” 

The boy silently stared at the extended hand, his nose wrinkling in distaste. 

“I know.” He looked away suddenly, his focus grabbed by something else. 

You followed his line of sight and saw the man, Corazon, attempting to light his cigarette. He flicked his lighter a couple times before he was able to successfully get his tobacco lit. During that entire process, you saw the entire right side of his coat go up in flames. It had gone unnoticed by the man for a couple of seconds before Shanks shrugged off his coat and began furiously patting down the tall blonde. 

You tittered in your hand, amused by the situation. 

Corazon may have looked like a serious individual, but in reality, he was a klutz. Somewhat like yourself, you thought.

You shook your head and refocused on the boy ahead, catching Luffy’s, 

“,--what’s your name--,” directed to the lanky ravenette glaring down at the individual in front of him. 

Ignoring Luffy’s question, the boy glanced over to you, his dark eyes dilating the moment they met your curious ones. 

“Are you Dracule, Y/n?” 

You nodded uncertainty, still hiding behind Luffy. The ravenette in front of you pouted in annoyance, clearly annoyed by the fact that he’d been blatantly pushed aside.

The boy’s expression softened as soon as you confirmed your identity, as if some burden had lifted off of his shoulders. 

You had no idea what was going on in his head, but you knew it wasn’t something good. 

What did he know about you? What was he hiding? 

When the adults returned, Corazon prompted his companion to introduce himself. 

Gruffly and without much effort, the boy muttered a quick ‘Trafalgar Law’ before falling silent again. 

Apologizing for Law’s behavior, Corazon gave his head a light knock before giving you a curt bow. 

Shanks appeared besides Corazon and ruffled Law’s head. The ravenette, annoyed by the elder’s actions, shook him off, but not before shooting him a scathing look.

“Law here will be staying with us from here on out.” The gloomy ravenette only sunk at Shank’s words. 

“Why?” You asked.

Corazon quickly wrote into his notepad and lifted it in front of you.

‘ _It’s safer here than where I live.’_

You gave the man a quiet ‘oh’, before accepting the situation. It was clear Law had to stay here in order to avoid a dangerous confrontation. Perhaps he had a bad run in with a criminal.

“I’m sure you’ve heard of Donquixote Doflamingo, haven’t you, Y/n?”

Donquixote Doflamingo? You’d heard Mihawk mention his names several times when he was alone with Shanks. 

‘ _Who was he again?_ ’

You thought long and hard, your nose pinched as you tried your best to recall who he was. 

When it came to you, you froze in fear. 

Tall, blonde, and dangerous. Doflamingo was the leader of a gang in Spain. The man, also known as the ‘Joker’ was known for his signature smile, one that could be referred to as the grin of death. 

As a child, you shouldn’t have known this information, but during some nights, when you snuck out, you utilized your sneaking skills which had come in handy when you wanted to know more about Mihawk. 

Seeing as your father was the Don of a mafia group running in Italy, he had several nasty confrontations with the Spanish gangster. Of course, Mihawk’s dangerous rendezvous as a Don was over, especially since he handed the title over to Shanks; which was the reason why he had visited during the summer you met Luffy. 

The man next to Law must have been Donquixote’s brother, probably due to the fact that they looked alike and that they shared the same last name. 

Looking back at Shanks, you gave him an uncertain nod. 

“If you know who he is, then you must know why Law’s here.” 

Giving him another nod of affirmation, you glanced towards the sulking ravenette. So he was someone who had escaped a dangerous situation as well?

You didn’t know if you could trust this Corazon guy, but you felt as if you could confide in Law. Afterall, he’d come out of a similar experience as you. 

_________________

The next few weeks were spent helping Law get adjusted to the life as a New Yorker. You later learned that he was Italian and that he could speak the language, just like you. Whenever he felt like insulting either Shanks or Luffy, he’d always slip into his native tongue, but not before checking if you were around. He’d had the misfortune of learning that you could also understand what he was saying. 

Sometimes, he purposely insulted you in Italian so you’d hear it. Of course, you told Luffy, which earned Law a couple of knots on his head. 

Luffy assumed the quarrels you had in Italian with Law were frinedly, but they were anything but. It was usually over something stupid like milk or bread. You had recently learned that he had a certain dislike for bread. When he got on your nerves, you'd always place a slice of bread on his plate. 

In the quiet hours, you'd often find Law sticking near you. You never knew why, but you assumed it was because he'd gotten used to your presence. The two of you enjoyed the comfortable silence, either reading a book or sleeping. 

Needless to say, the quiet couldn't last forever. Luffy and Law often butted heads when they met each other. You guessed it was their polar opposite personalities that clashed. Yet, despite all of Law's insults, you knew he trusted Luffy as much as you.

In your free time, when Luffy left you to your devices, you often thought of your father. Whenever Mihawk called you, you never spilled to him the situations you had gotten yourself into. Had you done so, you were sure your life as a New Yorker was over. 

The two of you often talked of Law, but other than that, there wasn’t much to discuss. 

You had learned that Perona was attending a college in Germany, a prestigious one you knew Mihawk would have been proud of her for getting in. 

Though your conversations with your father and sister were short, you knew they cared for you, no matter how little you interacted. 

During the winters, you’d return to Sicily while Luffy stayed at home to spend time with his family. Some winters, Law came with you, during others, he'd travel with Corazon. In the times that he did go to Italy with you, you'd often find him surrounded by a slew of girls. You didn't quite know why he was popular.

Was it his height? It couldn't have possibly been his personality... could it?

During school, Law actively avoided you and Luffy as if you were plague. You had no problem with that, but Luffy seemed to be adamantly against it, claiming that Law was his nakama. 

Most of the time, Law went out to explore Sicily or spent his hours locked in his room. Much like Mihawk, he preferred to keep to himself, which is probably why he was more excited to travel to Italy than return to New York, where he'd have to tolerate Luffy's hovering. Perona was never interested in interacting with Law, only occasionally stopping by your room to share matters of interest. 

During your stay at Mihawk's home, you were often lounging in your room, thinking of when you’d go back to fooling around with the brothers. 

While you were sitting on your bed, you noticed a small insect crawling on the border of your windowsill. Reminded of a certain incident, you grinned. 

_________________

It was a particularly cool day in New York, one that allowed you to stay out longer without overheating yourself. Despite the chilly temperatures, Luffy still insisted on going out shirtless and in his signature shorts. Not satisfied by his indecently open attire, you looked around for another piece of clothing he could wear. You grabbed the nearest hat, which so happened to be your favorite froggy bucket cap and yanked it over the ravenette’s straw hat. Though he protested at the invading cloth, he made no attempt to remove it. 

“Why do I need another hat?” He pouted. 

“So you don’t get sunburnt.” You gave him a thumbs up. 

“That doesn’t even make sense. I already have on a hat.” 

You tried to think of a logical reason, but gave up when none came to mind. Luffy shrugged off his shirt and tied it around the hat, creating a desert-sort of look. 

“Now it’s perfect.” He beamed at you.

Sighing in exhaustion, you let him do as he pleased, watching as he trudged out of the house to greet his brothers. 

Before you left, you caught Law lurking on the stairs. He passed by without acknowledging you, walking right out the front door. 

Ace deflated as soon as he saw the grumpy ravenette, his lips growing thin in distaste. 

“If it isn’t the emo goth.” 

Law glanced up and glared right back at him. 

“Emo and goth are two different lifestyles.”

“Only an emo goth would know that.” Ace sneered at the other boy, crossing his arms triumphantly when the older boy rolled his eyes. 

“Whatever.” 

“Are you coming with us, Law?” You asked inquisitively. You didn’t expect him to agree, but you still wanted to ask in case he wanted to. 

“No, I’m busy.” 

“Busy doing what, sulking around?” Ace taunted. 

“Don’t be mean, Ace.” You retorted, giving him a stinging look. 

“Busy studying to be a doctor, something an idiot like you wouldn’t understand.” Both Law and Ace glared at each other, the disdain between them painfully obvious. 

“Only a loser would study during the summer.”

Sabo punched his brother in the shoulder. “I study in the summer as well, you moron.” 

“You’re an exception.” 

Law and Sabo rolled their eyes at his response, but made no further comment on it. 

When the three of them were finished squabbling, you got ready to depart. 

Once you exited, you found yourself in a tight headlock by non-other than Ace. 

“Ha, you had your guard down!” The boy sneered. 

“Let go!” You wriggled around, but to no avail. 

Sabo swatted the eldest brother but made no move to help you. You struggled against Ace’s grip and even made an attack on his family jewels. Much to your disappointment, the ravenette was quick enough to dodge your pathetic attempts. 

When he was satisfied by your submission, he released you from the headlock, but not before giving your forehead a humiliating flick. 

He was seriously going to be the death of you one day… 

The four of you stopped under a shady tree in a park, squatting near an uprooted area to fish around for interesting artifacts. 

Luffy yanked out a discarded pantie and shoved it into Ace’s face, laughing maniacally when the eldest wrinkled his nose in disgust. 

“Someone was naughty here.” Sabo wiggled his eyes at you. 

“Why would you automatically assume it's my underwear?” 

“Because you’re a girl.” Luffy stated matter-of-factly. You shot him a scathing look before telling him to discard the filthy cloth. 

Digging through the damp dirt, you felt a smooth, cool surface beneath a root. After a minute of tossing the mound of mud out of the way, you lifted the object up. 

To your delight, it was a roly poly. Luffy lost interest in the pantie when Ace gave him a large knot on his head and instead focused on the insect in your palm. He watched in growing fascination as it uncurled in your hand, its spindly legs roving over the lines of your palm. 

“Wow, you found a big one!” He exclaimed, his grubby hands moving to snatch it from you. 

“And it’s mine.” You pouted, shutting your hand right before he had the chance to take it. 

“I bet I could find an even bigger one!” Sabo replied. 

He began digging through the hole like a madman, spraying dirt in all directions. Ace stood back and watched as his brother acted like a dog, laughing all the while. Luffy, feeling the need to challenge your roly poly followed the blonde’s lead. He too began scratching away at the dirt, his large eyes entirely focused on the brown surface. 

“You guys, it's not even that big.” Ace rolled his eyes at his brothers’ antics.

“Really, because that’s the first time I’ve seen one that big!” Luffy shouted from where he was at. 

“N-No it isn’t!” Ace glanced towards your closed fist before looking back at his brothers. “I bet I could find an even bigger one!” 

“Can you though? I’m sure I’ll still win, no matter how many you find.” You taunted the taller boy, making sure to stick your tongue out. 

Finally feeling competitive, the ravenette returned the insult and moved to a different tree, squatting down near the root and getting straight to work. 

“Look, I found a massive one!” 

You glanced over Luffy’s shoulder at the same time that Sabo did, the both of you shooting the other a confused look. 

Luffy was not, in fact, holding a roly poly. In his palm was a large mound of smelly dog poop and by the looks of it, it was fresh. You pointed to it and laughed out loud, amused that he had thought it was a living insect. 

“You idiot, that’s dog poop.” Sabo tittered along with you. 

Luffy scratched his head innocently before discarding the excrement. “It looked like a roly poly. It was dark and shiny.” 

“It looked nothing like a roly poly…” You lifted your brow at him. 

Honestly, you knew you shouldn’t have expected much from him. He was brawn more than brains afterall, but that’s what made him all the more charming. He could be oddly convincing when he wanted to be and he often got himself out of sticky situations fairly easily. He was naively innocent; innocent enough that he didn’t ever feel the need to get angry at your little remarks. There were times when Sabo got on your nerves, but it didn’t last long when he offered you favorite treat. Ace, on the other hand, was a whole ‘nother story. Did he apologize for anything? No, because, as he liked to say it, ‘He was always right.’ 

‘ _Right my butt._ ’ You huffed to yourself, continuing to play around with the insect in your hand. 

In the corner of your eye, you spotted a lurker hiding beneath a batch of bushes. Discreetly looking up, but not so much that they'd notice your staring, you took a nice, long look at them. You were shocked to find, Law peering at your group among the trees. It was creepy, yes, but you felt he had done it out of loneliness. 

He didn't like sharing his thoughts, but it was fairly easy to distinguish his mood based on his physical actions. This was one of them. The lurking weirdo card was often used when he felt particularly down. There was no telling what had caused his depression, but you pertained it to his past. 

So as not to alarm the rest of the group, you retreated into a clearing. When you lost sight of the trio, you relaxed, releasing a sigh of relief. The instant you let your guard down, you tripped over a root, falling flat on your butt. 

You were paralyzed in pain and shock, adrenaline pumping through your veins. When you were finally able to recover from your humiliating slip-up, you rubbed your bottom and hastily looked around, hoping you were the only witness. Luckily, no one had seen you fall, on the downside though, your butt was covered in mud. 

"Damn it--" You clucked, dusting the filth off. 

In the process, you noticed a crushed flower near your hand. You stared at it sadly, your brows knitted in frustration. Such a beautiful plant, and you absolutely demolished it with your clumsiness. 

Picking it up, you attempted to revive it, carefully flattening the crumpled petals. When you got it to look slightly similar to its original form, you smiled in glee.

' _This should be good enough._ ' You thought to yourself. 

Pocketing the object, you continued your way to Law, crouching near the bushes when he scanned over your area. 

Once you made a path behind him, you clamped your hand over your mouth, so as not to give away your position. When the boy relaxed against the tree he was hiding behind, you jumped up, digging your fingers into his waist, giving him a good ol' 'taser'.

The boy's body shook with surprise before going rigid. Well, that wasn't quite the reaction you were looking for...

It was too late when you realized you had made a mistake pranking the boy when he whirled on you. 

Law expression mirrored that of a calm storm. Appealing to look at from a distance, but horrifying to experience it. 

Gulping down the knot of adrenaline in your throat, you hesitantly lifted your head in his direction. There was nothing you could do to defend yourself. 

Law's eyes were blown wide in anger, his pupils completely dilated, covering the entirety of his dark irises. 

"Y/n-ya?" He hissed, "What the hell do you think you're doing?" 

"L-Law, I'm sorry." You quickly murmured, your hands moving up to push him away, "I saw you in the distance and I thought that you might want some company." 

"Why would I want your company?" He asked condescendingly. 

"I-I don't know." The boy released your collar and you dropped to the floor, your legs shaking like a newborn calf. 

Boy, you never knew he could be so terrifying. Maybe that was because Luffy always ended with the short end of the stick when it came to Law. 

The ravenette sighed in exhaustion, working the adrenaline out of his system.

Feeling slightly more brave, you spoke up. 

"What are you doing here?" 

He briefly glanced your way before squinting into the distance, raking his hands into his hair, pushing the dark strands away from his eyes. 

"That's none of your business."

"Oh..." You trailed off, awkwardly squatting next to him. 

Law finally conceded after a long moment of silence, but not before he made you squirm in discomfort at the tense atmosphere. 

"I wanted to take a quick walk."

You raised your brow at him.

This place was well away from Shank's neighborhood. 

"A quick walk? This park is an hour away from Shank's place."

"Shut up." He looked away, a light blush dusting his pale cheeks. 

You turned away and grinned, making sure to do it discreetly so as not to offend him. 

"So..." You trailed off, awkwardly rubbing the back of your neck, "That Corazon guy, is he your dad or something?" 

Law scoffed, rolling his eyes, "You of all people should be able to tell if he's my real dad or not."

You knew well enough that Corazon wasn't his father, but you were curious about his relationship with the odd fellow. Was it similar to the one you had with Mihawk or was it more like the dynamic Luffy had with Shanks?

"Well, it doesn't matter if he's biologically related to you, only that he cares for you." You picked at the grass near your feet, tossing the discarded bundles near Law. 

He stared at the bundle in annoyance, but made no attempt to reprimand you on it. 

"I can tell he's a good guy, that Corazon, Tragoro." 

Law's eye twitched at his butchered name. "It's Trafalgar."

"Tashigoro." 

"That's even worse than the last attempt." He sighed. 

"Traffy." 

"No."

Thinking deeply, you attempted to imagine the words in your mind. When you failed conjure his name, you thought back to Luffy. 

When in doubt, trust Luffy's thought process. 

"Torao!" 

Law dropped his head into his hands. 

"Somehow that's even worse than you butchering my name. Of all things, why did you resort to using Luffy's stupid nickname?"

"Because it's catchy and easier than Tonkio."

"That's not even--" He gave up halfway through his sentence, opting to go for the quiet route instead. 

Another moment of silence ensued before Law spoke up again, knowing full way you had no intention on starting up the conversation. 

"Yeah, he's a pretty good guy." The ravenette leaned against the nearest tree, his eyes closed.

'He looks so serene...' You thought. 

You hadn't expected someone like him to feel at ease around someone like you, but more times than not, your intuition was wrong. 

"What?" You cocked your head to side inquisitively. 

"The thing we were talking about before." He cracked open a single eye to peer down at you. 

"Oh." 

He was talking about Corazon. 

You smiled to yourself, thinking back to the times when you caught Torao leaning into Corazon's affectionate touches. No matter how hard he tried to act butch, it was clear he craved affection from time to time. Were you even human if you didn't?

"You know, you aren't all that bad, Torao." 

Law glared at you, clearly offended by your words.

"Wait, I didn't mean it like that. I meant, that you aren't half as bad as your resting bitch face makes you out to be." 

The boy's brows were crinkled in vexation, his eye twitching. 

"How is that better than what you said before?"

You shrugged nonchalantly before shoving your hands into your pockets. Your fingers brushed against the forlorn flower, tracing the soft edges of the petals. You'd completely forgotten that you had it. 

Thinking back, it was a beautiful thing; with petals as pale as snow and splotched with black dots. It was a shame your clumsiness destroyed it. 

Law observed you as you fished the plant out, holding it up to the sun. The light filtered through the gaps, covering you in a sheen of gold. You looked over at the ravenette next to you, comparing him with the flower. 

Oddly enough, it looked exactly like him. Droopy and sad, but with a hint of mystery. 

You held the flower to his face, offering it to him. 

"What is that?" He asked inquisitively, his brow arched. 

"Do you want it?" You offered innocently. You didn't why, but you were nervous he'd reject you. 

Was offering a flower to a boy weird? Would he even want it? I bet he wouldn't... Its all crushed and not even pretty anymore. 

He scanned the pathetic excuse of a flower, giving you that 'are you kidding me' look. Disappointed, you glanced away, wringing your wrists awkwardly. 

You should have known better than to offer something stupid like this to him. He probably preferred medical books... or bread.

"Why would I want something that shitty?" 

Your heart squeezed in your chest for some unknown reason.

Why was that, you wondered. 

"If you didn't want it, you could have just said that." You quietly added, starting to pull away from him.

Before you could, he stopped you, his cool hand wrapping around your retreating wrist. The nerves around the are began to tingle. It felt weird and foreign.

' _What was this feeling_?' 

Your stomach was twisting in itself and your heart was doing this weird fluttering thing. Were you dying? Was it cardiac arrest? What the hell was happening to you?

Then it dawned on you... you must have been hungry. 

Luffy would always complain that his body was deteriorating if he didn't get his daily fill. Of course, you trusted his words, knowing full well they were the truth. 

You glanced up at Law, your gaze meeting his dark one. The fluttering returned, only this time it was ten times worse than the last time. When had his eyes looked so dark? 

Man... you must have been really hungry. Maybe his eyes reminded you of chocolate... or bread.

His expression morphed into one of confusion the longer he stared at you. His brows drew together and his lips became a thin line.

Just before he looked away, you could have sworn you saw a blush on his cheeks, or maybe that was embarrassment... or anger.

Why were you overthinking everything? 

' _It's got to be the hunger. That much be it!'_

"I-I'll take it." He murmured, quickly shoving the flower into his pocket. 

You smiled broadly at him, delighted he accepted your gift. 

"It reminded me of you." You gave him a cheeky grin, ruining the moment you shared together. 

Law sighed out-loud, relieved you returned to normal, "You're really an idiot." 

After you gave him a moment to recuperate from the odd situation, the ravenette gestured towards your forgotten group. 

"Aren't they going to notice your absence?" 

Jumping up in surprise, you quickly dusted off your clothes, giving him a crooked grin. 

"You're right! Thanks, Torao!" You ran out of the clearing, but before he was out of your sight, you glanced back at asked, "What about you? What are you going to do?"

The boy shrugged, getting ready to leave himself. "Probably going to head back home."

You gave him a quick nod, returning to your group soon after. 

Ace peered at the two of you from where he was hiding, his mouth set in a firm frown.

'What were you doing with that pasty loser?' He wondered. 

After you'd gone missing for more than ten minutes, he became agitated and began looking for you.

Didn't you care if he found a bigger roly poly than you? Did you suddenly forget the competition.

'I wouldn't be surprised. That idiot never pays much attention to anything,' he scoffed. 

When he found you in a small spot with Trafalgar, he immediately felt an anger rise up in him. He knew you hadn't done anything to incite such a reaction from him, but the mere sight of you canoodling with that pasty boy was setting his nerves on fire. 

While you were fooling around with the loner, Ace had been searching for an insect to one up yours. He knew he was acting immature, considering he was three years older than you, but he couldn't help wanting to be better than you. 

Why... though?

What was it that drove him insane? Was it your idiotic personality or your insufferable presence? 

After he gave himself time to cool down, he returned to his group, grumbling to himself all the while. 

When you returned to the trio, you fished out your roly poly from your pocket and presented it to the brothers. 

It had been exactly thirty minutes when Ace returned to the clearing. His usual smirk was replaced with a grimace. You grinned cheekily at him, prompting him to open his hands. 

“What exactly is that?” You laughed at his miserable offering. 

“A-a roly poly…” He quickly covered his discovery, embarrassed that his friends were laughing at him. 

“That’s a stink bug, Ace!” Luffy pointed to the multi-colored insect, giggling behind the palm of his hand. Right as he said that, the bug released its pungent gas right into Ace’s face. 

As soon as he started coughing into his sleeve, the three onlookers gazing at the ravenette’s hand howled in laughter. 

You'd learned later that day that laughing at Ace had been a mistake... one you paid dearly for. 

After the event, you, Sabo, and Luffy spent the evening holding bags of ice over the bright red knots decorating each of your scalps.

“We’re sorry.” The three of you meekly bent your heads in shame. 

“You better be sorry. I smell like a person who just got farted on by someone who ate rotten eggs.”

Luffy giggled at the comment, but immediately regretted it when he earned an additional knot. 

After much apologizing, the four of you quickly made up and ate a hearty meal, forgetting the previous incident. 

_________________

The last year you saw Ace and Sabo was the summer before they began attending high school. The small middle schoolers you were, both you and Luffy weren’t cool enough to hang with them anymore. 

Right before the summer ended, the four of you decided to go out to enjoy the day. Naturally, Law had declined your offer to tag along. That said, Luffy was craving meat, so you started throwing out suggestions. When he rejected each of them, you gave up, looking to Sabo and Ace for support. Needless to say, Ace ignored your plight, so you had no just but to rely on the blonde for help.

Sighing, he scanned his surroundings and pointed to the nearest restaurant. As soon as Sabo suggested ramen, Luffy perked up. 

He looked between the three of you and squinted. 

“Who’s going to pay this time?” 

The group of four grew silent as an exchange of heated looks commenced. Ace lifted his fingers and started counting down from five. When he reached zero, the four of you shouted ‘Not me!’ in perfect synchrony. 

“Y/n was the last to say it.” Ace leered at you before shrugging nonchalantly as if he were the most innocent person in the world. 

“Hey, that’s not fair! Why do you get to decide?” You raised your balled fist to his face.

“Because I was the officiator?” He smirked at your pinched expression, “You snooze, you lose. Don’t be a sore loser, peep.”

Sabo rolled his eyes at his brother’s antics before dragging the group to the restaurant. 

“Look, Y/n, if you can’t afford it, I’ll help out--”

You raised your hand to the blonde’s face, stopping him mid-sentence, all the while, maintaining your glare at Ace. 

“No worries, I’ll pay.” You gave the eldest ravenette an eerie smile, one that didn’t go unnoticed by him. 

Luffy was oblivious to what was happening, clearly enveloped by the scent of the ramen wafting from within the folds of the building. 

“Can we just go and eat? We can decide who’ll pay later. I’m starving!” He dragged the four of you into the place, walking right up to the waiter. 

When she sat you down at the counter, the quartet immediately gave the head chef their orders. Luffy ordered five large miso char siu while Sabo and Ace settled for three spicy ramens. Once then finished ordering, they glanced towards you. 

“I’ll have two spicy as well!” You chimed.

“Hey, old man, be sure to add plenty of menmas in mine!” Luffy added, “Oh, and don’t forget to add lots of pork and narutos!” 

He gave the group a warm smile before jumping right to work. As soon as your orders were ready, the four of you dove right in, each creating a cacophony of slurps and hums of approval. 

Luffy devoured his meal within a mere minute of receiving it, his stomach still growling in hunger. Sabo took his time enjoying his ramen while Ace was passed out mid-slurp, his bangs dipping into the soup. 

“Is he alright?” The head chef glanced towards your sleeping companion. While you gave him an indifferent shrug, Sabo was kind enough to reassure the man. Luffy, on the other hand, was outright protesting that the servings were too small. 

When the four of you finally finished your meals, it came time for you to empty your wallet. Looking to your friends, you were shocked to discover that Luffy had devoured an extra seven bowls while the other two brothers added another two to the list. 

You deteriorated at once, your whole being blinking out of existence. When did they have the chance to order more? You hadn’t even noticed it!

The waiter from before appeared by your booth, quickly handing Ace a large bill. She gave the four of your the largest smile she could muster. This worried you immensely, to say the least. 

The ravenette glanced at the digits and cackled out loud. He then slid the plastic tray towards you and wiggled his brows, as if to say, ‘good luck’. 

“Ass.” You retorted, swiping the bill from Luffy’s prying hands. Sabo merely watched the commotion, a toothy grin stretched upon lips.

Upon seeing the total cost, you nearly passed out.

As you roved over the mess of numbers, your eye twitched in annoyance. You now knew the reason why the waiter was so delighted. Your companions had pigged out without even giving a rat’s ass on how much it’d cost you. 

“So, who’ll be paying?” The waiter patiently waited for one of you to answer. 

A large smile replaced your frown, mirroring your deviant intentions. You quickly glimpsed at Ace before sticking your thumb in his general direction. 

“He’ll be paying.” After you said that, you sped out of the restaurant through the open window, Luffy in tow. It didn't matter that you were on the second floor, only that you were able to land safely in the bushes below. 

Ace and Sabo were shell-shocked by your actions and ran out after you, but not before the blonde shot an apologetic look to the chef. 

“You cheat! You said you would pay!” 

The four of you ran away from the waiter, glancing back every now and then to check if they had gained distance. As you shot through the streets with the others following close behind, you tossed your head back and laughed. 

“I never said I’d pay them, only that I’d pay you back for pranking me!” 

Sabo and Luffy cracked up at that, only to be attacked by their eldest brother.

Once you lost sight of the waiter, you leaned against the nearest wall and gathered your energy. The others were breathing just as heavily, if not worse. They’d have gotten themselves caught several times if it weren’t for your quick thinking. Despite having lived in New York for a majority of your life, you still remembered how to navigate streets easily. 

Remembering your current predicament, you glanced up at Ace warily, assessing your situation. Would escape be possible or were you doomed?

Instead of outright attacking you, Ace chuckled. His action had shocked you, so much so that you were even more wary of him now. 

Why was he laughing? Did your prank really drive him insane? Was death imminent?

“You’re crazy, Peep,” He remarked, “I didn’t think you’d dine and dash.” 

The boy pushed back his slick bangs and leaned next to you. 

“What’s with the sudden docility?” You asked quizzically, still unsure of his intentions. 

“Oh, don’t worry, I’ll still get you back, but right now, I’m far too exhausted to move.” 

Luffy and Sabo heaved themselves upright once they were done recuperating their energy. The four of you then retreated back to Shanks’ place, enjoying the rest of the day under the AC while snacking on crackers. 

_________________

That was your last interesting encounter with the group before they had broken up.

Ace and Sabo later returned to their states and continued with their lives while you attended middle school with Luffy. 

Little did you know, your future regarding Ace was to become far more interesting... 


	4. Timeskip!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if this chapter was a little shorter than usual, but I wanted to seperate it into two parts! The first was for Law! The second will be more for Ace.

Grand Line University was a prestigious, yet fairly welcoming school. With its high acceptance and graduation rates, it attracted many interesting individuals from around the world. That said, it also brought in many… questionable people. 

From fraternities to secret societies, the Grand Line had it all. 

It didn’t come as a surprise that your entire group attended it as well. Law, Ace, and Sabo, your long time ‘friends’, had entered and graduated highschool long before you. Once finished, they applied for the Grand Line, getting in fairly easily, especially Law. 

Intelligent, stand-offish, and mysterious, it came to no surprise that a majority of the girls, and a few guys, had the hots for him. Sabo, on the other hand, was kind and easy to get along with, another reason why he was also popular with most of the undergraduates. 

Of course, you’d heard this from Luffy, having not been updated on them for a while. Law was currently working on his masters in the medical field while Sabo was studying something involved in politics. Of what, you weren’t sure.

Since you hadn’t seen them since the beginning of their highschool career, you had no idea if they had changed over the years. 

Since you kept in touch with Law, you knew he didn’t change much, but you weren’t quite sure about Sabo or Ace.

While the blonde shot you the occasional, ‘Things are great’ text, Ace was radio silent, not that you cared much. 

During the course of your freshman year of college, you made several new friends, that of which included: Nami, Zoro, Sanji, Franky, Robin, Usopp, and Chopper, among many others. 

While they were your primary friends, you also got along with Killer and Bepo from other groups. 

Nothing of significance really happened in your freshman year of college, but you couldn’t be sure that streak would be held afterwards. 

________________

  
  


You were in your calculus class, bored out of your mind as the Professor rambled on about cartesians coordinates, limits, and whatnot. To you, it sounded like pure gibberish. 

Why did you decide to take math in the first place? It’s not like it had anything to do with your major anyways.

That aside, you had other things on your mind, like the beautiful weather and the things you wanted to do before the day ended. 

Maybe you’d pick up some Malaysian food for Luffy or groceries for Sanji afterwards.

The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and the clouds were ripe with the promise of rain. 

What could possibly go wrong?

Just as you thought that, you heard a loud clang outside your classroom, followed by muffled shouting and the rush of footsteps down the hall. 

Accompanying all the ruckus was a very unique and a _very_ recognizable voice. 

The distinct ‘Shishishi’ laugh could be heard through the thin walls. 

“Don’t worry about what’s going on outside, I want you all to be focused on the whiteboard.”

You frowned at the professor’s words. 

You were bored and Luffy, bless him, had given you an excuse to ditch class. Raising your hand, you asked the teacher if you could go to the bathroom. When she begrudgingly gave you her approval, you sped out.

As you made your way down the hall and towards the communal bathrooms, you gave your surroundings a quick scan, relieved when there was no one around. 

However, that relief was short-lived. 

When was anything calm around Luffy?

In a split second, you caught sight of the ravenette’s signature straw hat around the corner. 

Smiling, you started on down the hall, ready to pursue the boy--that was till you saw the mob of security behind him. 

At the sight of you, Luffy grinned and jumped into the air, waving to you as if nothing was out of the ordinary. That said, you were completely on the other spectrum of okay. In fact, you were absolutely not okay with being hunted down by half of the school's teachers. 

“Y/n!” Luffy giddily called out your name before hooking his arm around your shoulders, catapulting you down the hall with him.

“Luffy?! What the hell happened?” You asked, breathless. 

“It’s not my fault they’re after me!” He laughed, “They just came at me for no reason!”

“Somehow, I feel that they have a perfectly justifiable reason for chasing after you.” 

“Hey! You’re supposed to be on my side!”

You laughed at his response. 

“So, what exactly happened?”

At this point, the two of you were sprinting down several corridors to shake off the security, but man, were they persistent. 

When the two of you had the time to enjoy a short breather, Luffy quickly summarized the situation. Apparently, he’d snuck in a large sack of steaks into his class. The teacher hadn’t noticed it until he began eating it in front of him. Normally, a student would back off when a teacher told them that what they were doing was wrong, but this was Luffy we were talking about. When had he ever listened to authority?

That said, you regretted sneaking out of class to entertain Luffy’s little problem. Unfortunately, the situation was out of your hands now, seeing as how the security were adamant on catching you too. 

Pulling you down a flight of stairs, Luffy suddenly stopped in front of a dead end. You sweatdropped, realizing that you were now screwed. 

“What do we do now?”

Luffy scratched his head and paused, his line of sight moving towards the large, and _very_ open windows. 

“We jump!” He stated as if it were the most sane thing to do. 

“Uhh, that’s a two story drop, Luffy.”

“I know.” He flicked a booger out of his nose. 

“So, where will we land?”

“On the bushes.”

‘That sounded… reasonable enough…As long as it doesn’t get me killed, anything goes.’ 

‘When in doubt… trust Luffy’s thinking…’ You mentally berated yourself for even trying to reassure the seed of doubt blooming in you. 

You’d known Luffy for many years, so you trusted him with your life, but even he could get a little on the dangerous side. 

That said, having grown up with him, you began to adopt his thought process, often resorting to more primitive, out-of-the-box solutions to your dilemmas. 

“Yolo?” You asked.

“Yolo!” He stated, promptly diving out the window with you in tow. 

You’d have taken the time to enjoy the rush of wind and the adrenaline coursing through your body if it weren’t for the face crushed into your cheek or the drool dripping onto your shirt. 

Other than that, you could say that you were having fun. I mean, when wasn’t spending time with Luffy not fun?

The two of you safely landed onto the bushes below, both howling in laughter at the events that had just occurred. 

“Well, it could have been worse.” 

Standing up with Luffy, you shrugged off the leaves clinging to your sweater, looking around warily. 

Luckily, the absurdness of your fall had caused the teachers to stop in their spot, abruptly losing track of the two troublemakers. 

Luffy dragged you to a safe clearing before leaning against the nearest wall, a large smile plastered to his face. 

“I think we lost them.” He giggled.

“You think? I’m sure they think we’re dead.”

“That’d be pretty funny.”

“It would.” You laughed with your companion.

Once the adrenaline from the fall cleared, you suddenly felt a pounding pain in your left arm. Looking towards the source of the affliction, you realized your fucking joint was detached.

“What the fuck!” Crying out, you fell to your knees, clutching your arm in pain. 

It swung around like a limb off a doll, lifeless and broken. 

“You okay?” Luffy glanced down at you.

He was clearly not taking this situation as seriously as you’d have liked him to.

“My arm is broken.” You gasped out, your words accompanied by several sharp hisses.

“Is it? Let me see.” 

The boy lifted the appendage, inspecting the source of the injury. He whirled it around as if it were a toy, laughing as it flopped back down to your side. 

If you weren’t in so much pain, you’d have probably found the situation humorous as well, but as it were, you were currently the one losing your mind. 

“C-Can you fix it?” You wheezed through gritted teeth. 

“What do I do?” 

“Uhh…” You pursed your lips in thought, “Pop it back in?”

Luffy’s brows drew together, as if he were in deep thought. 

“Like a pop-socket?”

“Something like that…” 

“ _Yosh_!” The boy pushed his sleeves and got to work. 

After a few minutes of poking a prodding, he finally gave up, tired or hearing your agonized screams. 

“I--” You inhaled deeply through your nose, organizing your disoriented thoughts, “I think we should call Torao.”

“We don’t need him! I’ll fix your arm.”

“You sure?”

“Positive! Don’t worry Y/n, I’ve got this! You’re in safe hands!”

Reassured by his words, you gave him a wobbly smile. 

About fifteen minutes into Luffy’s feeble procedure to fix your arm, you finally gave up. Sweat slicked and shaking, you proclaimed your surrender. 

“L-Luffy, I think I’m going to pass out.” You wheezed. 

“No, wait, I almost got it!” His tongue peeked out lips and his brows were drawn in concentration, giving him an almost cute appearance. 

Looking down at your arm, you were horrified to see it bent in three different places. You would have liked to laugh at the comical appearance, but you were on the brink of blacking out. 

A minute later, Luffy conceded, pulling out his phone to dial the broody ravenette. Six calls later, the lanky bastard finally picked up. 

A gruff, ‘What do you want, Mugiwara-ya,' could be heard on the other end. 

“Torao, how do you fix a dislocated shoulder?” 

“What are you talking about?”

“Just tell me how to fix it.” 

Luffy touched your arm again, shaking the afflicted area. You hissed in pain and slapped his hand away, reprimanding the touchy boy. 

_Trafalgar was horrified as he listened to the bickering on the other end. He heard bits of,_

_“--don’t touch that--”_

_“--It looks like a chicken wing--”_

_And, “--just push it in--” from Luffy’s end of the call._

_The ravenette excused himself from class and ran out into the hall, clutching the phone tightly._

_“Luffy-ya, what the hell is happening. Who broke their arm?”_

_“Oh, it’s just Y/n.”_

_“Y/n-ya? What happened to her?” The ravenette hissed, “How the fuck did she break her arm?”_

_Trafalgar heard crackling on the other end and words of protests as the phone was passed to someone else._

_“We jumped out a window.” You stated nonchalantly, as if it weren’t a serious matter._

_“You what?” He asked lowly._

_“Look, just teach Luffy how to fix my shoulder and we’ll stop bothering you.”_

You returned the phone to Luffy, leaning back to catch your breath. 

“Wait there, I’ll go to you.”

“Torao, we don’t need you here. Just tell me how to do it!” 

“That’s the problem you idiot, you’ll probably end up ripping her whole arm off if I let you fix it.” 

The whistling on the other end of the call was a telltale sign that the grumpy ravenette was running, probably to get to you before Luffy had the chance to mess your arm up even more. 

  
  
  


Law appeared thirty minutes later, soaked in sweat and panting. His features were taut in anger, presumably at Luffy. 

“Now, while I fix her arm, you’re going to tell me how the hell this happened.”

“We jumped out a window.” Luffy restated, “I don’t understand why you didn’t get that the first time. Are you deaf?” He picked a booger from his nose and blew it away. 

Law’s eye twitched.

“The context, you moron. Why did you jump out a window?”

“Long story short, I got dragged into one of Luffy’s antics.” 

Law sighed in exhaustion before working on your arm. Once he checked the injury, he pulled back, raking his fingers through his slick hair. 

“The good thing, it’s just a dislocated shoulder. You’ll have to wear a splint for a little while, but after that, you shouldn’t have any problems.” 

You raised your brow at him.

“And the bad part?”

“The bad part is the cost.”

“The cost?” You asked quizzically, cocking your head to the side in confusion. 

“Yeah, the cost for my fucking therapist. I ran here like a psycho thinking Luffy was going to fuck you up even more.” 

Both you and Luffy laughed at his words. Unamused by the two of you, he decided to ignore the idiots. 

“Aw, you sound like you care.” 

“Hell'll freeze over before I care about you.”

Giving him a pat on his shoulder with your good arm, you mentally prepared yourself for what was to come. 

“It’ll take a quick second.” He gently pressed his fingers into the nook of your shoulder, “On the count of three, I’ll push it in.” 

You nodded in affirmation, shoving down the lump of nervousness squeezing your heart. 

“One.”

‘Phew, okay, you can do this.’ 

“Two--” He pushed the joint into place without warning you. 

You crumpled to the floor, biting on your lip to squander the urge to scream in pain. 

“You bastard. I thought you said you were going to do it on three.” 

“I lied.”

“Torao, you should be more careful with her.” Luffy went back to picking his nose.

“You’re the last person I want to hear that from.” The ravenette glared at the shorter male, pinning him down with the nastiest look he could muster. 

Law sighed at Luffy's lack of response.

“There, you’re all good. Just make sure you don’t add pressure on that arm.”

“Thanks doc!” You stretched the arm, moving it this way and that, clearly impressed by the ravenette's professional job.

Law stood up, ready to leave, that is, till Luffy began clinging to him. 

“What is it now?" Law gestured towards the building, "I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but class is still on.” 

“Torao, I’m hungry…” Luffy whined, his tongue hanging out of his mouth. 

You perked up at his words. Food? You could go for some sustenance.

The two squabbled for a while, but it was clear Law wouldn’t budge. No matter how much Luffy pestered him, his answer was always the same, ‘no’.

After a while, you noticed you were also hungry. Making up your mind, you decided to join in on the bickering. 

At that, you clung to Law’s other side, mustering up your best puppy eyes. 

“Not you too, Y/n-ya.” Law pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled harshly, clearly attempting to collect his wits. 

“Class is almost done and I’m far too weak to walk back to my dorm.”

The ravenette rolled his eyes at your dramatic words, but you could tell he’d already caved in. Was your persuasion skills really that good?

‘Huh…’ You thought. 

“I should try it on Zoro, maybe then he’ll let me hold his katanas…”

“What was that?” Law frowned at you disinterestedly. 

“Nothing!” You chimed, pulling him away from the clearing. 

________________

  
  


The three of you ended up going to the nearest barbecue stop when Luffy began salivating at the smell of fresh meat. Although you weren’t the biggest fan of BBQ restaurants, you were far too exhausted and far too hungry to protest. 

Upon entering, you noticed every female's eyes looking up at Law. Already used to this, you made your way to the waiter and placed your order. The man led the three of you to your booth and took yours orders. 

Sitting back in your seat, you examined the restaurant, your gaze flitting to the different women in the area. It was apparent they were looking at one person and one person only -- Law. 

You didn’t get what they saw in him. Sure, he was objectively handsome, but beneath his pretty appearance, he was as boring as a medical textbook.

If you had the choice, you’d go for someone more like Luffy or Ace--

You stopped yourself mid-thought, horrified you’d even consider him an option. 

Shaking your head in frustration, you cleared your mind of the abhorrent notion, before glancing over at Law, who was staring at you rather weirdly.

Creeped out, you coughed into your arm, breaking the ravenette out of his trance.

“Something on my face, Torao?”

“No, I just spaced out.”

You raised your brow at him. 

“Okay, if you say so.” 

Brushing off the odd feeling, you redirected your attention to your best-friend, surprised when you saw him passed out next to you. 

Sagging skin and sunken eyes, he was practically a replica of one of the mummies you’d see in the museums. 

You poked his cheek, laughing when he whined. 

“I’m hungry.” He groaned. 

“I know, Luffy, I know.” 

As soon as the waiter returned with the requested items, Luffy was revitalized. He dug into his food like a man starved and smiled in glee when you offered a small portion of yours to him. 

“You really shouldn’t be giving it to him.”

“Well, it's not like I’m going to eat it all.”

“You should, you look skinnier than before.”

Chortling at his comment, you scarfed down what was on your plate. 

“That’s probably because I sweat all the fat from the torture I endured from Luffy.”

Law’s eyes narrowed, clearly unamused by your lack of seriousness over the issue. 

“I wouldn’t want you to starve like before.”

You froze at his word. You felt an unwanted memory hit you like a freight train. 

_Malnourished, cold, and alone, you were shivering in an alley, your hands cupped in front of your face. You were so hungry, you were afraid you’d die right then and there._

Did he know something about your past?

“What did you say?” You grew defensive, your words harsh. 

“I said, I wouldn’t want you to starve. You probably haven’t eaten at all today.” 

A moment of silence ensued before you gave him a meek, “Oh…” 

Rubbing the back of your neck awkwardly, you offered the ravenette a half-assed smile as an apology for your rude response.

'I must have heard wrong...'

Immediately feeling guilty that you'd snapped back at him like that, you averted your eyes.

Law only huffed at your reaction before quietly eating his portion of the food. 

The rest of the time was spent in silence, the only noise audible was that of Luffy’s slurping. 

He had something green stuck in his teeth and remnants of his meal were plastered all over his mouth. You’d have liked to laugh at him, but you probably looked the exact same. 

When it came time to pay the bill, you offered to chip in, only to be rejected when Law slid his card over the receipt. 

When you had asked why, he only replied with a gruff, ‘No reason’. 

Feeling thankful, you decided to push the matter away, for now, at least.

That awful memory that suddenly resurfaced still lingered deep in your mind, souring your mood. 

You weren’t particularly elated by the fact that Law may or may not have been clued in on your past. 

But... that was a topic for another day.


	5. Eustass Kid makes his Appearance!

School was, for the most part, fairly boring. 

Classes, you got it. Drama, it was there. Luffy’s presence, insufferable.

Especially of late.

You had no idea why he was acting like this. Was it because of your arm or was it something else? 

Either way, you were in no mood to entertain him, mainly due to the load of work you had on your back and since October was quickly approaching, the teachers wanted to get in as many assignments as they could.

As always, the festive, spooky season brought out the rebelliousness in students. From preparing upcoming halloween parties to purchasing costumes, there was no limit to how far they’d go to make it more successful than the year prior. 

Although you enjoyed October, the first half was always a drag. Your group of friends would go out of their way to formulate a plan, and unfortunately, this year was no different. Sanji was cooking up a storm in his kitchen while Usopp was decorating his dorm room with Franky like a madman. The others, mainly you, Zoro, Chopper, and Robin, were left to hide out in designated rooms. This was a safe haven from the halloween-crazed fiends.

Nami made you and Robin promise to go out on the weekends to pick out halloween costumes, which you reluctantly agreed to. It’s not like you had a choice in the first place, especially with the way she bribed you with Tonkatsu. 

Other than that, your life was pretty normal, save for the times Luffy got you into another sticky situation. 

_______________

You made your way to the university library one cloudy morning, enjoying the sights and smells the campus had to offer.

Grand Line, having recently had a downpour of rain, smelled like soil and of fresh water. The clouds hung overhead, gray and lazy, having just expelled its contents.

This was your absolute favorite type of weather. It was the kind of environment that made you want to curl up on your couch with a blanket and watch some movies.

Unfortunately, with all the homework you were assigned, you were in no position to be lazing about. 

With that in mind, you grumpily entered the library, promptly sliding into the nearest desk and pulling out the contents of your bag. 

‘Sociology, calculus, macroeconomics…’ A tiny, monotonous voice droned in your head. 

You set to work at once, your head buried within the mounds of books. 

An hour into your study session, you heard someone creating a racket on the other end of the library. 

You attempted to refocus on what you were doing, drowning out the loud voices to concentrate on the study of derivatives… or economic stability… You couldn’t quite remember which you were reading anymore due to the incessant thudding on the other end of the room.

About five minutes later, you finally gave up, your patience hitting its limit. 

“Isn’t the library supposed to be a place of silence?” You hissed to no one in particular. 

Walking towards the source of the commotion, you were shocked to find your friend Killer holding back his companion, the one, the only, Eustass Kid.

Huffing in disbelief, you finally understood what was going on. 

Quietness? Studying? Patience? None of those words were in Kid’s vocabulary. 

Watching the scenario unfold before you, you recalled the first time you met the hot-headed red-head. 

_______________

_It had been a cool day in March when you decided to take Luffy’s scooter out for a ride. You don’t quite remember why you did, but you did recall wanting to take it out for a spin. Sabo had gotten it for him as a Christmas present the year prior when Luffy had begged his brother for it. You didn’t quite understand why, as a college student, he’d want a scooter, but you didn’t question it. After all, it was Luffy we were talking about._

_With nothing to do that day, you rode it around the campus, opting to enjoy the serene moment of silence you’d been granted. No Luffy. No Law. No pestering presence. This time was for you and you alone._

_That said, your peaceful bubble was about to be broken when you rolled near the male’s dormitory area._

_The first thing you saw was a shock of red hair held up by a pair of steampunk goggles. As soon as you saw them, you knew exactly who they belonged to._

_Kid and his crew of misfits were loitering near the entrance, discussing whatever the hell boy’s talked about at that age._

_As you closed the distance between them, you failed to notice the wheel of your scooter hooking onto the edge of the sidewalk, promptly sending you flying face first into the mud._

_Distracted by the sudden ‘thud’ only a mere foot from him, Kid lifted his head and glanced down at the source of the sound, roaring in laughter at the sight of you._

_“What the hell are you doing?” He asked, clearly amused by the whole situation._

_His friend Killer hopped down from his spot and made his way over to you, slowly lifting you into a sitting position._

_“You okay?” He asked worriedly._

_You quickly wiped the dirt from your face and fixed the red head with a nasty glare, completely ignoring the blonde next to you._

_“The fuck are you looking at? Have you never seen a person fall before?” Irritated and wet, you were in no mood to be playing the nice one, especially when Kid was using that tone with you._

_The redhead's grin was immediately replaced by a terrifying snarl._

_“Well, I’ve never seen anyone with the balls to talk to me with that fucking tone.”_

_“Hard to believe, considering you make an enemy out of everyone.”_

_“The fuck did you say?”_

_He picked you up by the collar of your hoodie and lifted you up to his face._

_Man, from here it was painfully clear he was so much taller than you._ _Kid was damn near seven feet of pure muscle and anger._

_Did you really want to get on this guy's bad side?_

_Still, this gave you the opportunity to look at him in detail._

_I suppose if you squinted, like REALLY squinted, Kid looked slightly like Shanks, but in terms of personality, he was the complete opposite. He was brash, cocky, and arrogant, completely unlike the well mannered and polite Shanks that you knew._

_His attire consisted of yellow and black slacks paired with an onyx vest that left nothing to the imagination. It was all held together by a flimsy leather belt and black boots._

_Calling it a unique outfit was an understatement, it was a horrible combination, one you’d hate to be seen in._

_“Let me go.” You hissed, your hands wrapping around his much larger ones._

_“Not until you fucking apologize, scooter.”_

_He made sure to enunciate the last part._

_“Scooter? The hell did you get that from?”_

_“From that dumbass move you made earlier, you fucking moron.”_

_The two of you stared the other down, neither feeling like backing out, that is, ‘till Killer placed his hand on Kid’s shoulder._

_“Kid, let her go, she’s not worth getting angry over.”_

_Killer mouthed ‘sorry’ to you before redirecting his attention back to his friend._

_“Yeah, listen to your friend, troll doll.” You quirked a brow at him condescendingly._

_Having grown up with someone like Mihawk, you weren’t afraid of gangsters like Kid, they were small fry compared to the real deal._

_“What. Did. You. Say?” He hissed, his voice eerily low._

_You swallowed the lump in your throat, suddenly losing the bravado you had just a minute ago._

_“Kid, listen to me, it’s not worth it.” Killer attempted to separate the two of you._

_Ignoring his friend, the red head continued to pin you down with a terrifying glower, his brows digging into his eyes, giving him an almost feral look._

_“You know, now that I think about it, you look exactly like that shortstack who hangs around that monkey bitch.”_

_Monkey… bitch?_

_You took a moment to process his words. A split second later, you gasped, utterly offended._

_Returning a similar scowl, you snapped, “You mean Luffy?”_

_“Was that his name? I can never remember all those new wimps showing up.”_

_Kid’s golden eyes flashed menacingly._

_“Say…” He drawled, a terrifying grin stretching his painted lips. “Why don’t you tell me your name and I’ll let you off easy.”_

_Killer sighed in relief at his words, but you knew better than to ease up. This man had some sort of ulterior motive for wanting to know your name._

_“Why do you want to know?”_

_He leaned in so that only you could hear his words._

_“So I know who to murder when I see them next.”_

_You sweatdropped, quelling the alarm bells blaring in your mind._

_“Let me go first.”_

_He released you at once, watching in glee as you dropped like a sack of potatoes._

_‘Sick freak.” You thought, rubbing at your sore bottom._

_Quickly gathering your wits, you collected your fallen scooter and prepared to flee._

_Any rational person would have given their real name at a time like this, but you weren’t a rational person and you certainly didn’t feel like giving out your government name._

_This wasn’t a time for thinking, it was a time for action. That said, you blurted the first name that came to mind._

_Quickly turning around, you gave him a prompt, “P-Portgas D. Ace.”_

_He looked to his friends and lifted his brow, as if to say, ‘remember that’. Then he turned back and gave you a quick, “Is that so?”_

_You nodded in affirmation. The red head creeped closer, stooping over so that he was at your level._

_“Are you lying to me, scooter?”_

_You sweat-dropped._

_“Why would I lie to you at a time like this.”_

_The man narrowed his eyes. After a moment of deliberation, he grinned._

_“You must really be a D if you hang out with that bitch, Luffy.”_

_As much as you wanted to give him a piece of your mind for insulting your friend like that, you knew this wasn’t the time to do so._

_Yet, you couldn’t just walk away without defending his honor._

_With that in mind, you picked up the handle of your scooter and swung it around, aiming directly for the red head’s ankle._

_It was childish, you knew that, but when weren’t you petty? Could you really say you were Luffy’s friend if you weren’t as troublesome as him?_

_As soon as the hard metal end connected with the bone, the man crumpled, clutching at source of his injury. A pained look replaced his detestable shit-eating smirk._

_You winced at the sound of his knee connecting with the solid cement, but felt utter pride at his expression of suffering._

_“See ya, troll.” You chimed before sprinting away._

_You fled the area rather quickly considering you were holding a scooter over your head, but when it came to life or death situations, you were rather light on your toes._

_Escape was your forte._

_________________

You were torn out of your daydreams when a heavy textbook came catapulting your way. Accompanied by the flying object, you heard a gruff, “Fuck this shit!”

Narrowly dodging the book, you were ready to give the individual who’d ‘yeeted’ it a piece of your mind when you realized it was a certain redhead who’d done it. 

If you were still a scared freshman, you’d have probably ignored him, but as it were, you were now blessed with a level of confidence only Luffy was known to have. 

As you were arranging to leave, you heard a loud, ‘Scooter?’, before an ear-piercing crash. 

Only Pete knew what was going on there. 

Wincing, you hesitantly glanced back, immediately regretting the action as soon as you did. Killer was holding back an enraged Kid as he made eye contact with you, quietly pleading with you not to do anything rash. 

You mustered the best apology you could, knowing you wouldn’t be able to quietly accept his request. 

Unfortunately, you weren’t as nice as other people. When there was an opportunity to mess with an angry ginger, you took it. 

Your first meeting with Kid certainly hadn’t been your last, in fact, you had several other run-ins with the hotheaded individual, and none of them ended pleasantly. 

You knew this time wouldn’t be any different from all the others. 

That said, you slowly bent over, picking up the discarded textbook. You gave it a quick pat, weighing the heaviness in your uninjured arm. 

‘Don’t do it.’ Killer mouthed back at you.

You lifted it high in the air, prepared to deliver the kill shot. The instant the book left your hand, you made a run for it, ducking beneath the nearest table to watch as the horrific scene unfolded before you. The textbook hit Kid square in the back, forcing him to cease his assault on his friend. 

"Who the hell-"

Upon seeing you in the distance, nonchalantly picking your nose, the redhead tensed up, ready to unleash the wrath of hell upon you. 

Though he tried to get to you, Killer, who was almost as big as him, was proving to be a great blockade. Feeling assured you were a safe distance away from the raging monster, you continued to assault him with a slew of taunts. 

He’d cursed you out so immensely, you were sure he’d slipped into another tongue, judging by the way his words were no longer comprehensible. His eyes were bloodshot and he had this crazed, manic expression about him. 

“Why hello there, Kid, I didn’t see you there.” You whistled nervously, your gaze averted. 

It was painfully clear that your little stunt was obviously aimed for him. That said, there was nothing the Killer could do to prevent the killing machine headed your way. One day or another, you’d eventually get yourself into hot water with the way you were fooling around with his friend. 

Sighing in exhaustion, Killer gave up, opting to stand on the sidelines as he watched the scene unfold in front of him. 

You flicked a booger away, blowing on your finger to sanitize the area. 

“Killer, I swear, if you don’t fucking let me go, I’ll kill you.” The red-head lunged for you again, only to be held back by his friend. 

Once you felt the need for revenge leave your system, you backed off, offering Killer a meek smile as an apology. When it involved Kid, you knew never to go too far, something Luffy never felt the need to know. You'd be a witness to the unfortunate slaughter of your friend my the large redhead. 

Bless his poor soul... 

Broken by the short trance you were in, you glanced back at Killer, clasping your hands together to plead for forgiveness. 

“Please don’t provoke him any further. You know I’m going to be the one regretting it later…” 

His words plunged you into a pool of guilt. 

You knew what you did was wrong, but you couldn’t help it. You tried studying in peace until it was disturbed by that _dimwit_. What else could you do other than give him a taste of his own medicine?

That said, you knew the red head wasn’t going to forget this incident easily, nor was he going to forgive you for it. 

“I’ll remember this, you bitch!” He roared, his maroon lips twisting into a fearsome frown. 

Just before he could get his hands on you, the librarian reared around the corner, her arms propped on her hips and an angry expression replacing her usual serene facade. 

“Excuse me, but this is the library, gentleman, not the clubhouse. I would appreciate it if you didn’t create a ruckus here, else I’d have to call security to drag you out.”

Killer repeatedly apologized to the lady, offering to help her out with the books later as a way to bribe her. 

It was quite hilarious watching a man as large and as terrifying as Killer reduced to meek man. His looks didn’t account for his personality. Though, in a way, it made sense. Without him around, Kid would probably have been wanted for murder in several states. 

Before you could get yourself further involved in the predicament, you dipped, but not before shooting Kid a quick ‘peace out' before leaving. You couldn't just leave without getting the last word... or the last action in. You had your pride to maintain after all. 

Although you wanted to say the rest of the day would go about smoothly, you knew that was a lie.

Especially since a certain someone had returned back home...


	6. Surprise... Pt. 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was originally supposed to be longer, but I decided to chop it in half. The second part will be submitted today as well. :)

What was a normal day to you? Going out with your friends to buy macchiatos from your local coffee shop? 

No. 

Was it going back to your dorm to study for your upcoming exam?

Wrong again. 

Nope, your version of normal was staying on guard in case someone, namely a person named Ace, was going to assault you, because that’s exactly what happened to you today. 

How did that happen, well, you’d have to go back thirty minutes to know exactly what went down. 

_______________

  
  


You were in class like any other day, gazing out the window in boredom. Only today, you weren’t in the best of moods. The night before had been difficult for you, with the nightmares of your exam coming and going. You couldn’t sleep for hours and when you did, it was fitful. 

The professor was droning on and on about something you weren’t paying attention to. I mean, how could you staying focused when all anyone was talking about was some stupid party for someone you didn’t know. 

They were even talking about it now, while the teacher wasn’t paying attention. Eavesdropping on your peers conversations, you heard the occasional, 

“--He’s so hot--”

“--have you seen him--”

“--where’d he get the cowboy hat--”

, and the, 

“--are you going to the party?--”

Although a party would have been a nice distraction right about now, you didn’t quite have the time to spare to attend it. That said, it’d probably be a bad idea to attend in the first place. You knew if you attended, Luffy would attend… and if Luffy attended, then the rest of your friends would attend and that wasn’t a prospect you’d have liked to imagine. 

To distract yourself from the rumors circulating around the room, you focused on the tree outside, delighted when you spotted a feathered friend on a nearby branch. 

‘Oh, what a cute bird.’ You thought to yourself, admiring the cardinal ruffling its feathers. The bird stared right back, its large, black eyes peering at you as it cocked its head to the side.

You had your cheek propped up on your hand as you marveled at the wondrous little creature. It wasn’t everyday you’d get to see something as beautiful as a cardinal. All you ever saw was pigeons and crows, not that you hated them, mind you, but this sudden change was a breath of fresh air. 

With how angry the cardinal looked, you’d have thought it was Kid’s reincarnate. 

You laughed to yourself silently, imagining him squaring up to you in the form of a bird. You’d have liked to have seen that… 

Coarse laughter and silent whispers echoed around the room as the teacher popped a joke about something dumb, of what, you weren’t sure. The only thing you knew was that the room was warm and your eyes were heavy. Everything was starting to grow fuzzy as the heat lulled you into a state of sleep. 

‘One sheep, two sheep…’ You groggily imagined a herd of sheep hopping over a fence. 

‘I’m hungry… Maybe I’ll drag Luffy out later today to get some sandwiches… Or maybe I’ll stop by Sanji’s place.’ 

Just as you were succumbing to the darkness, you heard a curt knock, followed by a cacophony of gasps and excited whispers. 

“Who is that?” Some girl asked.

“Don’t you know who that is?”

Your ears perked up.

“Yo, when did he get back. I haven’t seen him in a good minute.”

“Why is he here? He isn’t even an undergraduate anymore.”

You tried to push down the curiosity. 

“Wow, he’s better than the pictures.”

“Isn’t he? I wish he’d notice me.”

Now you were irritated. Who on earth had the audacity to interrupt your nap? Although, it wouldn’t have been half as bad if it were your long time crush, Uchiha Obito.

‘If it’s a sexy man, at least let it be Obito. Please, please, please--’

You warily lifted your eyes, slowly moving your gaze from the animated students to the source of the commotion. 

Your heart literally _stopped_ in your chest. 

_Reality was often disappointing…_

A small part of you mourned at the fact that it wasn’t Obito, but a larger part of you started freaking out when it realized who exactly you were looking at. 

Those features, the outfit, that stupid, _cocky_ grin, and his infamous freckles. 

He’d certainly changed from the last you saw him, which was when he was 14. Now, he was at the prime age of 22 and he’d certainly grown into his big forehead and his large ears. 

You observed his sharp jaw, dimples, and his pink lips. On either side of his perfectly shaped nose were two blazing mahogany eyes. His brows were dark and thick, currently furrowed in a frown as he inspected the classroom. All of it was framed by dense, dark inky waves that furled at the nape of his neck and over his exposed… wait… his _EXPOSED_ shoulders.

Why wasn’t he wearing a shirt?

Your gazed flitted from his chest to his hair, eyes widening as they caught a glimpse of the unique orange cowboy hat.

Why was he wearing that?

Before you had the chance to even process what the hell was going on, Ace yanked the door open and arrogantly strutted in as if he owned the place. 

He rolled the lollipop in his mouth as he observed the wide classroom. He whistled, clearly impressed. 

“Excuse me, but we’re in the middle of class, young man.”

The ravenette rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and laughed, but not before profusely apologizing for his rude actions. 

The teacher grumpily excused him, understandably annoyed by the whole situation. 

You peered behind when you heard someone ask, “Is that him? Is that Portgas D. Ace?”

The whispers started back up, only this time they were much louder and much more obvious. It was clear that they were trying to get his attention.

“Isn’t he Sabo’s brother?”

“When did he get back?”

“Fuck, he’s so hot.”

“Why’s he here?” 

You slid down your desk, so as not to appear as obviously out of place as the other girls. Unlike them, you wanted nothing to do with him. In fact, if you had the power to disappear right then and there, you’d take it, because you knew the instant he saw you, all hell would break loose. 

“Yo, Peep, are you here?” 

Followed by his comment was a quick, “Oh right, that’s not her name.”

You froze at the nickname, feeling something akin to fear blazing down your spine, or was it something else? 

Why would he call you by that stupid nickname in front of the whole class? Was he trying to get himself killed later?

‘Just kill me.’ You begged. ‘At this point, just take me out. Someone, anyone, please send a hitman after me.’ 

Of course, you were ignored and the invading parasite was so very close to finding you. He took his time looking through the classroom, doing a thorough 180 as his eyes scanned over the desks. It was obvious he was looking for someone, but who, you didn’t want to find out, because you felt the sneaking suspicion you already knew who the sorry victim was. 

‘Please, don’t do this to me.’ You pleaded. ‘I’ve already had a shitty day, so please, just walk out and pretend this never happened.’

You squeezed your eyes shut and prayed he’d walk out. 

“Y/n?” The male student next to you lightly tapped on your shoulder. 

You cracked an eye open and peered at him, nodding your head in acknowledgment. 

“Are you alright?

“Why? Is something the matter?” You swallowed the lump of nervousness in your throat.

“Oh, no, I was just concerned.” He chuckled nervously, “You looked like a constipated frog, so I was wondering if you wanted to go to the nurses or something.”

Your eye twitched.

On top of nearly being murdered by Kid and being interrupted by Ace, now you had to deal with being compared to a constipated frog… not that it was the worst thing to be compared to, but it was far from the best. 

“Oh, I’m fine…” You trailed off, failing to reassure the boy. 

You were slid halfway down your desk and you were sure your odd position was causing your triple chin to pop out. 

Of course, you’d look like a constipated frog, the stress was getting to you!

That said, this wasn’t the time to be concerned over yourself, when there was someone far more concerning in front of you. 

Speaking of stress, the object of it was currently rounding the corner, closing the distance between you the two of you. 

“I was wondering,” Ace glanced back at the teacher, “Do you have a student named Y/n here?” 

You immediately lifted your textbook, obscuring your face from his view. 

‘Oh gosh, please don’t embarrass me, Luffy does enough of that already.’

“Young man, if you really want to find her, you’ll have to come after class. I’m in the middle of a lecture and I don’t appreciate you interrupting it. This is a university, not your playroom.”

“Look, professor,” Ace shot him a lopsided grin, “It’ll be quick. I promise.” 

The two discussed the matter in private for a second before the teacher begrudgingly nodded.

‘Smooth talking, bastard.’ You thought to yourself. 

“Y/n you said?” 

Ace leaned over the teacher while he flipped through the roster. 

‘When did he get so tall?’ You wondered.

The teacher’s eyes lit up before he peered up to scan the crowd, his brows furrowing when he couldn’t find you. 

“Hey, aren’t they looking for you?” The boy next to you tapped your shoulder again. 

You furiously shook your head, shooting him a, ‘don’t say anything or I’ll kill you look’. 

“It must be another Y/n…” You laughed, coughing suspiciously into your sleeve to divert his attention from yourself. 

“Oh…” 

Finally understanding the signal, the boy looked away, clearly disturbed by the odd position of your body and your threatening stares. 

“Y/n should be here…” The teacher mumbled, idly scratching his head. “Miss Y/n, are you here? If you are present, raise your hand.”

When no one answered, you sunk even lower in your seat, holding up your biology textbook ever higher. 

“It would appear that she’s not.” The teacher cleared his throat, redirecting his attention back at the ravenette, “If you still insist on looking for her, you can wait for her after class or talk to the front office. Now if that’s all, would you kindly remove yourself from the lecture?”

“Ah, just one more second if you would.” 

_Ace’s eyes flicked from the teachers to the one person who was obscured from his view._

_‘I wonder who that could be.’ He pondered, a smirk pulling at his lips._

_It was abundantly obvious that whoever was crouched in the chair with their textbook over their face didn’t want to be found._

_He chuckled inwardly, a devious thought flashing across his mind._

“Sir, may I ask who sits there?”

He pointed towards your seat. The teacher looked up from his textbook, disinterested by the boy's disruption. 

He sighed before asking, “Whoever sits there, make your presence known or I’ll be docking points from the grade book. As soon as you do, the sooner we can get this whole distracting problem out of the way.”

“Thanks, teach.” 

The teacher grumbled at Ace’s laid-back response. Were you really going to sacrifice your grade to maintain your dignity? Was that what it'd come to?

You thought of the first Naruto character that came to mind, using his name as a replacement for yours. “I-I’m Shikamaru, sir, not Y/n.” You answered gruffly, lowering your voice to a more masculine one. 

‘Sorry, Shikamaru, I’m going to have to use your name for a little while.’ 

Unfortunately, you ended up sounding like a frog who’d smoked for thirty years. It was so obviously bad, you knew your cover was blown. 

You swallowed heavily when the entire classes’ attention was on you. 

“Nara Shikamaru? From Naruto?” Ace chuckled haughtily, knowing he had exposed you. “Well, _Shikamaru_ , you sound awfully feminine.”

“I’m sick.” You lied.

“Is that so?”

“Yea… uhhh... Anyways, I’m not the person you're looking for. I believe she’s in the class right next door.”

“And how would you know that?”

You shoved down the rising panic.

Cover = _Blown_. 

‘Ninpo-disappearing jutsu…’ You thought, willing yourself to blink out of existence. 

When the class went silent, you slowly lowered your textbook, peering over it. As soon as you’d done that, you immediately regretted it. 

A pair of brown eyes zipped to yours, widening in glee as soon as they spotted you hiding in your spot. 

He went completely silent as he took you in, his pupils dilating when they landed on your bashful expression. 

'When had you grown so much? And when had you grown to be so beautiful?' 

He could barely conceal the excitement and the longing he had accumulating in him, but for the sake of appearances, he needed to maintain a cool composure. With that said, he straightened the beaded necklace around his neck and cleared his throat. 

'Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.' 

He swallowed the lump in his throat and recomposed himself, donning on his cocky smirk before proceeding with the 'interrogation'. 

“Y/n, were you trying to hide from me?” He asked the question smoothly, the deep baritone of his voice reverberating through your bones.

You nearly passed out from that phrase alone. Why did he lower his voice to sound like that? Was he intentionally trying to embarrass me?

“I’m going to kill you.” You mouthed back at him, only growing more annoyed when he grinned at you. 

A thrill of excitement twisted your guts as you continued to inspect him. 

Although he was your rival, you couldn't help but feel a pang of nostalgia as you looked upon him. How was it that now you had met him again, you were starting to miss the little fights you had? What was this... feeling?

He was wearing nothing but a pair of black shorts and combat boots, his torso exposed for all to see. You didn’t have to look around to know that the girls in your classroom were ogling him. How could they not? With abs like that and a tan to compliment them, how could you not show them off?

What was this place to him? A strip club?

If you could have slid further into your chair, you would have, but unfortunately, luck wasn’t on your side. That said, the detestable ravenette on the other side of the room seemed to have the entirety of fate on his side. 

“Y/n, either you talk outside with him or you risk your grade. You’re wasting my time and your classes’ time.” 

“We’ll go outside, teach, don’t worry.” Ace shot you a wink, one you returned with a glare. 

‘Wait a minute.’ The devil on your shoulder cackled. ‘I can just pretend I don’t know him. I mean, why would a nobody like me know someone popular like him? That works!’ 

“Professor,” You raised your hand, a devious smile curling the ends of your lips, “I don’t feel comfortable going outside alone with a complete _stranger_. Who knows what he could do to me?” 

‘Congratulations, you played yourself, Ace.’ You nonchalantly picked your nose.

_'Somethings never change...' Ace thought, a smile on his face, as he watched you imitate his little brother._

You made sure to enunciate the last part before sending the ravenette a small smirk. 

Much to your dismay, he’d only grown cockier at your response, his grin growing larger. He looked almost… happy?

“Is that so?” The teacher’s gaze flitted between the two of you. “Well, I suppose there’s nothing to talk about then.” He turned towards Ace, giving him a knowing look. 

“Young man, I’m going to need you to leave this class this instant.”

“Oh, no worries, teach, I’ll get out of your hair now.” He pulled the lollipop from his lips with a ‘pop’, smiling smugly at you. 

‘Dickles, I’m going to make you regret embarrassing me like this.’ You thought. 

He raised his brow deviously before leaving, but not before sending a kiss your way, much to the surprise of everyone. 

That bastard knew exactly what he was doing. 

You pretended to cut the invisible heart he was sending, to which he responded by clutching his heart. 

Dramatic much? 

Despite all of his theatrics, you were happy. Why was that? It couldn’t be that you… that you missed his idioticness… could you?

A light bulb flickered in your mind.

‘Of course! I must have missed his wallet.’ You nodded knowingly.

You’d finally have the opportunity to eat more without paying. 

‘Thank you, Ace. Bless your kind soul.’ 

Just when you thought he had finally left you alone, you saw him squish his face onto the outside glass of the door, his eyes searching the class before landing on you.

‘What the--’

He blew onto the transparent surface, causing condensation to form on the thin layer. On the pane, he drew,

_‘14-1’_

You sweat-dropped. 

‘ _Don’t forget.’_

He jutted his finger to you before finally leaving. 

Although the other classmates had no idea what was going on, you knew exactly what he had meant by that. 

You winced, recalling all the times he’d tackled you for his stupid ‘summer bummer, tackle game’. 

Was he going to attack you out of the blue? Did you have to be on guard? 

‘Fuck this…’ You internally mourned your peace, knowing that you’d have to face every corner, expecting his stupid mug to suddenly assault you out of nowhere. 

Much to your demise, things hadn’t gotten better since his departure, in fact they seemed to have gotten worse. 

The girls were glaring at you while the rest were speaking in hushed tones, all the whispers clearly about you.

“How does she know him?”

“Is she his girlfriend?”

“Nah, can’t be. Probably an acquaintance or something.”

“Would two acquaintances seriously act like that?”

“It must be because she hangs out with that Monkey D. Luffy guy. Isn’t he brothers with Ace and Sabo?”

“That must be it!” 

You cringed internally, regretting your connection with the trio. How could you have known your friendship with them would ruin your college experience? On top of your still-sore arm, you had to deal with another troublemaker, not that you weren’t one yourself.


	7. Surprise... Pt. 2

Before you’d forget, you whipped out your phone and scrolled through your contacts. 

Would Torao help you fend off Ace? 

You shook your head. 

He’d probably leave you on read. 

How about Zoro? He’d kill me. 

Nami? It’ll cost too much. 

Chopper? He’s busy.

Luffy? He’d laugh and forget about it. 

Your finger hovered over Sabo’s picture. 

‘Maybe…’ You thought, pressing on your text chat. 

**Blondie (AKA Sabo, AKA, best brother)**

**Y/n:** I need your help.

_ Delivered at 2:00 p.m. _

_ Read at 2:05 p.m.  _

**Blondie:** Yo! What’s up!

**Y/n:** I’m in a bit of a pinch. Need some backup here, asap. 

**Blondie:** What’s the situation? What alarm should we use? 

You laughed, recalling the time you’d made codenames for each of the brothers. 

**Y/n:** Code red, code red. 

**Blondie:** What’s happening with Luffy? Is he in trouble?? Where is he? Send me his location!

**Y/n:** No, holdup, wrong code. 

**Y/n:** … 

**Y/n:** Code idiot.

**Blondie:** What the hell is that? 

**Y/n:** Okay, well, there’s this idiot who came into my class and I need a bodyguard against him. 

**Blondie:** Okay…? Who is it? Do you know their name?

**Y/n** : Well yes, but actually no. 

**Blondie:** Y/n, it's either yes or no. 

**Y/n:** Yes, I know their name, but no, I’m not telling you. 

**Blondie: -_-** , then I’m not helping you. 

**Y/n:** WAIT. Okay, I’ll describe them. Is that good enough? 

**Blondie:** Fine… What’s the color of their eyes?

**Y/n:** Diarrhea colored. 

**Blondie:** So… brown? 

**Y/n:** Sure.

**Blondie:** Hair color? 

**Y/n:** Black poop. 

**Blondie:** I don’t even think that exists and why are you using excrement as the only description? 

**Y/n:** Because it’s the closest I can get, in terms of detail… 

**Blondie:** Right… moving on. Features? Objectively speaking, are they attractive or unattractive? Tall or short? Male or female? Clothing? Age?

**Y/n:** Truthfully speaking, he’s ugly. He’s tall, but he’s nowhere near Kid’s height. Uh… He’s wearing a pair of hideous shorts.

**Y/n:** He has a bunch of wrinkles and warts. He’s an eyesore. 100%

**Blondie:** -_- Y/n, but honest with me, is it Ace?

Delivered at 2:09 p.m. 

**Blondie:** Hello? You still there?

Delivered at 2:15 p.m. 

**Y/n:** No… it’s not Ace. Why would it be him?

**Blondie:** Because he’s the only person you’d use the words poop or ugly with. 

**Y/n:** Wait, how did you know it was Ace?

Delivered at 2:17 p.m. 

**Y/n:** Sabo???? Did you already know he was here? Why didn’t you warn me ahead of time??? 

**Blondie:** He made me and Luffy promise not to spill. :/ He said he wanted to surprise you. 

**Y/n:** It wasn’t a funny surprise. I thought you were my friend. T_T

**Blondie:** What can I say. *insert shrug emoji* Oh, and for Ace, the code would be orange. 

**Y/n:** I didn’t want you to know it was Ace, because I had a feeling you wouldn’t help me if it was. 

**Blondie:** You were right. :) Have fun!

**Y/n:** That aside, can I rely on you to help me?

Delivered at 2:20 p.m.

**Y/n:** Sabo? Hello?

Read at 2:22 p.m. 

‘Jerk! He left me on read!’ 

You pocketed your phone before redirecting your attention back to the front of the class. Your leg was bouncing animatedly under the desk. You knew that you looked like a crack-addled freak just by the way your eyes wide open and scanning your surroundings. 

_______________

  
  


Once class ended, you were called to the front by your displeased professor. He made sure to give you a firm lecture before letting you off with a warning. 

That said, as the other students were leaving, some of the girls made sure to give you an unyielding glare. 

You weren’t quite sure why you were getting the blame, but you immediately brushed it off when you remembered you had something more important to look forward to rather than some jealous girls. Sanji had promised to make you your favorite snack after you were feeling particularly down when you learned you failed your exam. Afterall, what was more important than food, as Luffy often liked to claim. 

As expected, you’d completely forgotten the incident that occured only an hour before, so you weren’t prepared when you bounded out of the building.

You gave out a whoop as you were freed from your last class of the day, excited to get to Sanji’s place. 

‘Sanji, I’m coming!’ You cheered. 

The second your foot landed on the clearing outside, you felt something wrong in the atmosphere. Call it your shinobi instincts, but the hairs on the back of your nape were telling you something was amiss. 

‘Some evil force is at work…’ You warily looked around, your neck craning to give yourself a wider view of the outdoors.

Just as you relaxed, you heard a Tarzan call followed by the rush of heavy footsteps. Snapping your gaze to the right, you found yourself staring wide-eyed and in shock at the quickly approaching individual.

Shirtless? 

Yup.

Freckles?

Yup. 

Wild, delusional look in their eye?

Yup. 

At least 6’1” of pure muscle?

Yup. 

  
  


You puffed out your chest and inhaled deeply, preparing yourself for what you’d have to do in the next second or so.

‘Okay…’ You closed your eyes and smiled, ‘Time to run.’ 

Without wasting another moment, you broke out into a sprint, hauling ass to your dorm. Without Sabo, you had no chance against this ape of a human. 

That said, if he had been ten years younger and fifty pounds lighter, you’d have probably stood your ground and taken him on, but as it were, you were in no position to be fighting someone twice your size and your weight. 

You hurriedly glanced back, only to be scared shitless when you saw him right on your ass. 

How the hell did he catch up so fast? Was he waiting outside for you the entire time you were in class? What kind of psycho was he? 

When you were sure you’d be caught, you whirled around on the approaching individual, holding your hands up. 

“Ace--” You expelled the iciness from your lungs before continuing, 

“Wait--” 

You slowly inched back,

“Wait, let’s talk about this like adults.” 

“There’s nothing to talk about.” He shot you a smolder, an action you returned with a grimace. 

“Please.” You begged.

“Prepare to meet your maker!” 

You turned around and began running down the field as soon as you saw him crouch into a sprinting position. 

“Seriously?!” You wailed.

It wasn’t long before you felt a warm body tackle yours into the ground, effectively cutting off your route of escape. 

The both of you were breathing heavily as you recovered from the chase. Although Ace didn’t look as worn out as you, you could tell he was breathless. Having never been the type to workout, your endurance was absolute garbage. There was no way you would’ve been able to outrun him. 

That said, you were confused as to why he was out of breath. While you had an excuse for your shitty stamina, he certainly didn’t have one. 

You were panting heavily underneath the boy, attempting to catch your breath as he caged you in his arms. 

The ravenette looked down at you with a twinkle in his eye and a shit-eating smirk on his face. 

“It would appear that I’ve caught you,  _ mio cara _ .”

A blush crawled up your neck at the term of endearment. He knew you understood  _ exactly _ what he was saying. 

“I let you catch me.” You huffed in denial. 

“Really?” He gave you an incredulous look and laughed, his laughter rumbling through your body as his chest pressed into yours. 

He was beaming down at you, his smile reaching to his ears. 

It was a genuine reaction, one that shocked you into silence. 

“No comeback?” He retorted. 

You glanced away, an odd feeling twisting your stomach. 

After a moment of silence to recuperate, his voice dropped an octave, low and tinged with something unfamiliar to you. 

It was so hard to keep up your cool demeanor, especially when the ravenette was breathing down your neck.

When had he grown this much? Was he seriously still the scruffy kid you knew in your youth? And why the hell was he acting so differently? What happened in the eight years you hadn’t seen him? 

Despite almost a decade having passed, he still didn’t treat you any differently. It felt as if he’d never left. 

Deep down, somewhere hidden, you knew you were happy, because you had missed him--

You shook your head, expelling the thoughts clouding your consciousness. 

‘What the hell am I thinking?’

You felt his warm breath fan across your exposed skin as he continued speaking.

What was he saying? You’d been so distracted, you didn’t even notice the sly grin he was giving you. 

“Distracted, Peep?” 

You pouted at him. 

“Not at all, dickles.” 

The boy threw back his head and laughed. 

“I have to admit, I’ve missed that nickname.” 

As your breathing synched with his, you couldn’t help but feel self conscious at the way he was looking at you. Swallowing heavily, you forced yourself to make eye contact with him, unwilling to accept loss. 

Everything was always a competition to him. If you lost, he’d nag you about it, no matter how long it’d been since the defeat. 

The longer you looked into his eyes, the more you noticed the flecks of gold that danced near his iris. He was looking at you the exact way Luffy would look at meat. 

His hair fell into his eyes as he leaned forward, the delicate ends tickling your face. You reached out to him, your fingers moving to brush them away. 

He inhaled sharply. 

You faltered halfway, your fingers brushing against the soft fabric of his hat. In his moment of hesitation, you flicked his nose, giggling at his muddled expression. 

“Ace--”

You could feel his heartbeat reverberating through his chest, wild and giddy like an excited stallion. 

‘What the hell am I doing?’ You broke out of your odd trance, annoyed at the tingling sensation you felt in your heart. 

After you gave yourself a moment to return to normal, you gestured towards the both of your bodies. To Ace, this situation might have looked like two ‘friends’ reuniting, but to others, it’d have probably looked slightly more… explicit, to say the least. 

“Can you get off?” 

Ace cocked his head and grinned, leaning in closer so that his mouth was in position with y our ear.

“You’re in no position to be demanding things.” 

“What is that supposed to mean?” You frowned. 

“I mean,” he whispered, “What are you willing to offer for my cooperation.”

You finally understood what he was doing. 

'Sneaky asshole. Don't think I won't play along...' 

"Ten bucks." You whispered back. 

Ace lifted himself up and looked down at you in confusion.

"Ten bucks? That's all?"

"I thought we were recreating one of those crazy intense interrogations you'd see on tv."

The boy stared at you for a good minute before shaking his head, his shoulders rumbling in laughter. 

"What's so funny?" You grumbled, annoyed by his lack of response. 

Was there something funny about what you said?

"Nothing, you dense idiot." He flicked your forehead.

Alarm bells went off in your head. 

“Don’t act like Sanji, you idiot.” You hastily rubbed at the spot he touched.

He smiled at your innocent act, only to feel flustered when you pouted.

"What?"  You attempted to push him off, only to find your face pressed further into his chest. 

Thrashing around like a drowning animal, you pathetically murmured words of plea.

From this close, he smelled like sweat, cologne, and ember. It was odd, you knew, but it was a smell you hadn’t known you missed. 

Ace threw his head back and chuckled, but not before smothering you in an even tighter hug. 

“Why are you--,” You wriggled in his grasp, “--acting so weird?” 

When he released you from his unrelenting hold, you gasped, inhaling deeply. Sending him a scathing glare, you brushed off your body, already tired of his attention. 

“What can I say? I've picked up some things from my travels abroad.”

You rolled your eyes. 

“I really wish you hadn’t.”

“That’s what they all say.” 

“What do you mean--” 

Before you could even finish your retort, you heard someone roar, “Where the hell is Scooter?!”

The two of you looked up, surprised by the sudden interruption. You felt your muscles go taut at the realization of who it was. 

You heard Killer correct his friend, stating that Scooter wasn't an apt enough description. 

“Shit, your right…” He then began again, “Where the fuck is Portgas D. Ace?”

‘Mother. Fucking. Kid.’ 

“Eustass Kid?” Ace mumbled to himself, “What the hell does he want with me?” 

You were frozen in your spot. 

“I know you’re fucking here!” 

‘Oops?’

You might or might not have accidentally forgotten to tell Kid your real name. I mean, for the last year, he’d never really called you anything other than  _ Scooter _ . How were you supposed to remember to tell him the truth? One thing led to another and you’d forgotten that you used Ace’s name as a substitute for yours. 

Could you really blame yourself? You were in a tight spot and Ace was conveniently abroad. 

While the ravenette next to you was over here thinking Kid had a bone to pick with him, you knew the truth.

‘Fuuuuuck.’ You thought, mulling over the options you had at hand. 

‘I can either make a run for it while Ace is distracted or I can call someone for help.’

The more that you thought about it, the more you realized that neither option was really available to you right now… 

With that in mind, you began preparing for your eulogy. 

_ RIP Y/n, may she rest in peace.  _

“I’m going over there to check what's going on.” Ace’s smile curved into a frown. 

“Wait, Ace--” 

He stopped you halfway, shooting a quick, “Stay right there, babe.” 

Ace then plucked his cowboy hat from his head and placed it over your face, completely obscuring your view of the area. 

‘Babe?’ You had a half a mind to beat him up right there and then, that is, till you remembered the situation you were in. 

Distracted by the hat over your head, you temporarily forgot about the predicament, opting to feel up the odd lump over your face. 

You traced the soft leather of Ace’s hat, your fingers digging into the deep grooves on the rim. Judging by the frayed edges and the sun bleached spots, there was clear evidence that it had been exposed to the various elements. 

It reminded you of the time you first found it in a store… 

_______________

_ You’d gone shopping with Luffy to pick the perfect gifts for the brothers. Considering they were going off to high school, you thought it’d be nice to give them something that reminded them of home. Well, that’s what you wanted to do for Sabo. You weren’t quite sure about Ace though, you left his gift for Luffy to decide. _

_ “What about that store?”  _

_ Luffy gestured towards a decrepit building squashed between a library and a convenience store. You didn’t have to be intelligent to tell that it was run down and probably going out of business, but who were you to say? You didn’t want to judge it based on its outside appearance alone, but you couldn’t help but think that it was a bad choice. That said, once Luffy had his mind set on something, there was no way to change it.  _

_ So, you allowed him to pull you along, warily glancing around as you entered the shop. The bell rang in the far corner of the door when it swung open, alerting the clerk to your presence. He glanced up from his spot at the counter and gave the two of you a warm smile.  _

_ “Why, hello there? Are you here for something specific or are you kids just browsing?”  _

_ “We’re here for gifts!” Luffy chimed. _

_ “Actually, we don’t know what we want yet, so we’ll just be looking around.” You added.  _

_ “I see. Well, just let me know if you need any help.” _

_ “Thank you!” Both you and Luffy announced at the same time.  _

_ With that, you began scouring the shop, touching every little trinket you found. The place offered everything from antique dolls to ipods, but none of them were within your budget. With a measly thirty bucks, there wasn’t anything of value you could buy. _

_“I wonder what Sabo would like…”_

_ “Probably meat!” Luffy drooled at a meat shaped toy.  _

_ “You think he’ll like that?”  _

_ I mean, when was Luffy ever wrong? You’d learn to trust his gut, since it got you out of trouble a good 99% of the time. He was your lucky charm.  _

_ “I’m one hundred percent positive he’ll love it!” _

_ You shrugged. _

_ “If you say so, Luffy.”  _

_ You split from your companion, opting to check out the rest of the shop. The place was filled with so many objects that you were sure if you checked each one out, it’d take a lifetime to do so. So many memories, so many pasts, so many trinkets.  _

_ As you trekked around, you found a particular item that grabbed your attention. It was a mannequin that stood lifelessly behind a glass pane. The figure was flaunting a beautiful red gown made of soft, satiny fabric.  _

_ You lifted your hand to the glass, your fingers tracing the outline of the dress.  _

_ Next to the outfit was an orange cowboy hat. It was almost funny, a beautiful victorian dress was next to a shoddy early 1900’s style headpiece. _

_ Still, it was no less attractive. Complimenting its tawny orange hue was a beaded, red necklace and a pair of circular faces. One was smiling deviously while the other was frowning, each the polar opposite of the other.  _

_ You reached out to touch it, curious of how it’d feel in your hands. Was it rough and leathery like a new hat or was it soft and worn out?  _

_ You withdrew almost immediately, afraid of tainting its delicate beauty.  _

_ ‘I could see Ace wearing this, it's totally his style.’ You thought to yourself.  _

_ But, when have you ever seen him wear a hat?  _

_ You shook your head and forgot about the matter, returning to your dawdling friend. Luffy was currently engrossed in a comic book he’d found discarded on some shelf.  _

_ It piqued your curiosity.  _

_ “What’s that?” _

_ “It’s about Captain Jack Sparrow! He’s so cool…”  _

_ “Isn’t he a pirate?” _

_ You bent down, marveling at the detailed pictures. The two of you exchanged sparkling eyes, completely in awe of the book.  _

_ “Are you getting that for Ace then?” _

_ Luffy bit down on his lip, his brow crinkling in thought.  _

_ “Nah, I decided to get Sabo a pair of glasses!.” _

_ He lifted a pair of oddly shaped welding goggles.  _

_ “Those aren’t glasses, Luffy.” You chortled.  _

_ “Same thing.” _

_ “Not really.”  _

_ He pinned you down with a scowl, one you couldn’t help but find adorable. You laughed at him before glancing back towards the cowboy hat.  _

_ “So, if you’re getting Sabo something, what about Ace?” _

_ “Oh, I thought it’d be easier for you to get something for Ace since you’re closer to him than Sabo and all.”  _

_ Your eye twitched.  _

_ Was this little twat calling Ace your friend? A FRIEND? Was he blind or deaf? At which point did he start thinking you were Ace’s friend? _

_ “Uh, Luffy, I think you got that mixed up. Sabo’s the nicer brother while Ace is the mean brother.” _

_ “You’re not wrong about that.” He snickered,“but you hang out with Ace more than you do with Sabo…” _

_ “Only ‘cuz he likes to make fun of me…” You grumbled.  _

_ Sighing in exhaustion, you accepted your fate. _

_ “Fine, I’ll get him something.”  _

_ You did another trip ‘round the shop, considering every artifact it had to offer. Unfortunately, none of them seemed like anything Ace would like.  _

_ Why were you even trying to find something nice in the first place? It wasn’t like you had to. I mean, for all you know, you could have just gotten him one of those gum-shock sticks and pranked him with it.  _

_ You sighed warily, hating the guilt that gnawed at your conscious.  _

_ Yet, you couldn’t just do that. No matter how mean he was to you, it still felt wrong to give him something shitty as a parting gift. Afterall, this was probably the last time you were going to see him for a good while.  _

_ Even as you continued searching, you were still unsuccessful in your endeavor for the perfect gift, so you did what any logical person would do--you gave up. Your stomach was rumbling since you hadn’t eaten anything that day and Luffy was growing more impatient with each passing second. Perhaps this store didn’t have what you were looking for. It was unfortunate, but that was often the situation with these things.  _

_ With that said, you prepared to depart, a gift bag slung over one arm while the other was currently wrapped on Luffy’s elbow.  _

_ Before you left, you spared the cowboy hat one last look.  _

_ Would you regret not buying it? _

_ As soon as the thought had passed your mind, you felt a pair of eyes boring into your skull. Flitting your gaze to the clerk, you found him staring at you intensely.  _

_ “You want it?” _

_ “What?” You asked him, a bit confused.  _

_ The man chuckled at your aloofness.  _

_ “Bring it over, I’ll ring it up.”  _

_ “Do you mean it?” _

_ You chewed on your lip as you considered your options. Sure, you could go to another store, but would you be able to find anything as good as the hat? _

_ ‘Screw it…’  _

_ You released Luffy’s arm and bounded over to the cowboy hat, plucking it from its pedestal.  _

_ “Are you sure?” _

_ “I’m sure, young lady.” He flipped the price tag over and frowned, scribbling out the cost with his pen. “I have a feeling it’s going in the right hands. Call it fate if you will…”  _

_ You nodded slowly, unsure of what he meant by that.  _

_ “So, how much is it?” _

_ “I’ll knock off the original. How about…” He rubbed his chin in thought, “How about thirty bucks?”  _

_ “I have that exact amount!”  _

_ You excitedly dug through your bag, tossing the cashier a wad of crumpled cash. He gladly accepted the offering, counting out every dime and nickel.  _

_ Satisfied with the amount, he carefully slid it into the machine before delicately placing the hat into your gift bag.  _

_ “Thank you for your business.” He gave you a closed-eye smile, one that was eerily similar to Cora-san’s.  _

_ “No problem!” Luffy dragged you out of the shop at that, excited to go to the nearest snack stand.  _

_ The two of you spent the night at Sabo’s before preparing for the brother’s departure early the next morning.  _

_ As the four of you went back to Shanks place, you thought back to the hat in your backpack. What would you do with it? Were you really going to give it to him? Would he even like it? _

_ Still, it’d be a shame not to give it…  _

_ You watched Luffy hand his gift to Sabo gleefully, a crooked grin splattered on his face. It was evident that he was proud of his gift and judging by Sabo’s reaction, so was he.  _

_ The blonde inspected the goggles in great detail, ‘oohing’ and ‘awing’ at the intricate details lining the surface of it.  _

_ Suddenly feeling self conscious, you hid your gift behind your back.  _

_ Why would you care if he liked it or not? If he didn’t, he could just throw it away…  _

_ You swallowed the lump of doubt that formed in your throat.  _

_ ‘But would he like it?’ A small voice whispered in your ear.  _

_ Afterall, the two of you weren’t on the best of terms. Your relationship couldn’t really be defined by any normal labels. Sometimes you were passive with him, other times, you were rolling in the mud yanking his hair. Honestly, you didn’t quite know how you felt about the hot-blooded boy. Your hatred for him felt somewhat forced. If you didn’t hate him, you weren’t sure how you’d feel about him, because you were sure it’d be something akin to like or even love-- _

_ You pinched your forearm, shivering at the mere idea.  _

_ ‘Don’t be an idiot Y/n.’  _

_ Once Sabo and Luffy finished fanboying over the googles, they directed their attention to the eldest sibling, inspecting his indiscernible expression.  _

_ You hesitantly held your gift in front of him, turning your face away so you couldn’t see his reaction to it.  _

_ In all actuality, you were afraid of how he'd act upon receiving it. Would it be something like disgust or would it be more appreciative? _

_ ‘Appreciative? Probably not.’ _

_ “This for me?” He flicked a booger he’d been picking and grabbed the box from your hand, hastily yanking the ribbon off.  _

_ “D-Don’t be surprised if you hate the gift... It’s nothing special.” _

_ “It’s probably dumb.” He replied.  _

_ Your heart squeezed. _

_ When he opened it, his expression morphed from one of indifference to… well, something you weren’t quite sure of. Though his brows were lifted in what looked like surprise, his lips were twisted into a pronounced frown, as if he was displeased with the present.  _

_ “A cowboy hat?” He whispered quietly, as if it were an afterthought.  _

_ Lifting the headpiece up, he scrutinized it, flicking at the red balls and brushing his fingers over the little faces.  _

_ “If you didn’t like it, you could have just said that.”  _

_ You attempted to take it away from him, only to be stopped mid-way when he plopped it on his head. He gave the rim a few good flicks before offering you a reticent smile.  _

_ You were startled into silence by his odd reaction.  _

_ Could it be that he actually liked it?  _

_ His shy smile formed into a wide grin the longer he stared at the hat.  _

_ Your heart skipped a beat.  _

_ “I…” Ace’s brown eyes flickered over to yours before hesitantly looking down, “I like it.” The last part came out in a whisper.  _

_ You took a moment to process his words.  _

_ Did he actually confess to liking something you’d given him?  _

_ “W-Well, say something, you idiot.” Ace bashfully scratched the back of neck, purposefully averting his gaze.  _

_ You broke out of your trance and offered him a sheepish smile, reciprocating his apprehensive response.  _

_ Nothing needed to be said, millions of years of evolution had already taken care of the message that connected between the two of you.  _

_ That day, no hurtful words or taunts were exchanged. It was only two teenagers blushing like bashful idiots, nervous of the new development that had bloomed between them…  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More exciting things to come in the next chapter!   
> Ace's homecoming partyyyyyy.


	8. Confrontation!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I recommend listening to the slowed version of 'The Night we Met' by lord Huron for this chapter.   
> I REALLY, REALLY recommend it! :D
> 
> It'll be more meaningful if you listen to it towards the end of the chapter, a little after the part where the group leave the restaurant. You'll get what I mean when you read it. ;)

_Ace inspected the red head before ambling up to him, his arms crossed as a show of dominance. Though he was a good bit shorter than the hot-blooded student, he was no less intimidating. Underestimating him would be a mistake, one often made by his past enemies who’d judged him based on his looks alone._

_There was a low humming of students as they observed the confrontation happening in front of them. Some were joking about it while others were quietly watching. Of those students, a few had come up to get a closer look. It wasn’t everyday that two of Grand Line’s most popular students confronted each other, especially not someone like Ace, who’d been regarded as one of the most charming students of the university. Kid, on the other hand, was known for his notoriety and his brash personality. There was no room for bullshit or backtalk with him, something Ace was quite known for._

_Kid’s attention was grabbed by the approaching ravenette. Though his intentions unclear as of yet, the red-head knew better than to disregard him._

_“What the fuck do you want.” He demanded curtly, the ends of his lips curving into a deep frown._

_He wasn’t in the mood to be entertaining little prats at the moment. The only person he wanted to see was the girl who’d had the guts to throw a book at him._

_In fact, he’d been meaning to confront her for a good while now. She’d been nothing but a nuisance for the past year for him._

_“You requested for Ace. Here he is.” The ravenette gave the redhead a mocking bow._

_His attitude appeared carefree, almost indifferent, but Kid could tell he was on guard just by the way his eyes were focused and how the muscles in his arm were bunched, as if they were ready to attack at moments notice._

_‘So, he’s not some prissy boy…’_

_“I’m not in the mood for fucking jokes. If you know where Ace is, you’ll do fucking well to tell me.”_

_“As I said the first time, I’m Ace.” The boy’s eyes narrowed on the larger student, attempting to gauge his intent. “You’re Eustass Kid, aren’t you? An upperclassman here.” He promptly extended his hand._

_Kid swatted it away, a deep scowl lining his face._

_“I’ve heard of you, but I don’t believe we’ve met. Portgas D. Ace, at your service.” The boy gave the redhead a teasing look, his lips quirking up to form a taunting grin._

_The redhead towered over the other student his manic eyes wide and blazing in rage. Though he was quiet, his aura screamed homicidal intent._

_“Apparently…” He started off quietly, his voice loud enough to reach the boy opposite him. “Something gave you the idea that you could talk to me like that.”_

_The moment Kid made eye contact with the boy’s, his anger imploded within him. It was a hot, fiery mess that sent waves of rage coursing through him._

_The other student had the audacity to clean his ear out while in the presence of Eustass. If it was his goal to make Kid angry, then he succeeded, because the red-head was close to throwing the first punch._

_“I’d know if Portgas was a male.” He started, “and I’ve seen her more than once. So, I’ll ask again, Where. The. Fuck. Is. Ace?”_

_Before the other boy could get a word in, Killer approached the scene, quickly maneuvering his way around the other students to get to his hot-headed friend._

_“Kid, don’t do this here. People are watching.”_

_“I don’t fucking care if people are looking. If anything, it’s better that they are, so they can watch me as I beat the shit out of this fucking idiot.”_

_“That is, if you can.” Ace quirked a brow towards the other male._

_The redhead’s fist twitched._

_“Kid, why are you even picking a fight with him, weren’t you looking for Scooter instead?” Killer coughed the nickname out quietly._

_“Scooter?” The ravenette chuckled at the silly nickname. “Yea, I’d see why you’d pick a fight with someone called ‘Scooter’. The name's fucking stupid.”_

_Kid’s voice was plain, but his words were cold and biting, “What the fuck did you say?”_

_Killer could only stand back and roll his eyes. Why was it that when Scooter insulted Kid, he’d get angry, but when someone trash-talked her, he’d beat the shit out of the other person? It was ironic, to say the least. In a way, Killer felt the same way. The two shared this tenderness over the smaller girl. Her witty talk and senseless taunts were something he’d grown accustomed to, even fond of. Though, he knew Kid would never admit that, even if his life was at stake._

_“What, cat got your tongue, ginger?”_

_Before Kid could deliver the first punch, Killer held him back, but only barely. The redhead was far taller and far stronger than his counterpart, it was only a matter of time before all hell broke loose._

_The ravenette hopped back, a look of mild disinterest coloring his face._

_“I’m not interested in your fucking games, boy.”_

_“Boy? I’m only a year younger than you, fuck-wit.” Ace dodged Kid’s wide swing before retorting, “You know, I find it hilarious that some girl duped you into thinking that she was Portgas D. Ace. I mean, I know I’m popular, but I didn’t think there was someone crazy enough to copy my name. Sometimes, it's so hard being this sexy.”_

_The boy avoided another attack and smirked, “The fact that you’re getting heated over some girl goes to show how stupid this whole thing is. What exactly did she do to the high and mighty Eustass Kid for him to want to tear her a new one?”_

_“That’s none of your fucking business, piss-pot.”_

_At once, Kid whipped his leg out and kicked Ace in the stomach, sending him flying onto the grass. Expecting another swing, the ravenette hadn’t been prepared for the blow that was dealt to his mid._

_“Not so feisty now, are we?” Kid sneered down at the fallen boy._

_Upon thinking he had the upper hand, the redhead made the mistake of attempting to deal the final blow, only to find a fist aimed directly at his face._

_Ace spat out a wad of blood and scoffed, “Piss pot? That’s a new one. I’m glad you’re not in the nicknaming business, else I’d feel bad for the person called Scooter.”_

_Not only was the ravenette resilient, but he was quick to boot. It took him almost no time at all to recover from the blow he’d been dealt and prepare a counterattack._

_Before the two could really get serious, they heard a loud, “OIIIIII! Y/n! What are you doing here? Oh, is that Ace!”_

_Ace wiped the sliver of blood dribbling from his mouth and glanced over at the commotion. Kid, on the other hand, was far too enraged to even hear Luffy’s voice over the rushing of blood in his ears._

You were knocked out of your dreams when a ball connected with your cheek, throwing you back onto the gross. 

“Well, that’s certainly one way to wake someone up…” You rubbed at your sore flesh.

The college student who’d thrown the object gave you a quick apology before collecting the ball and returning to their game. 

You sat back in your spot for a good while, your thoughts jumbled and your body disoriented by the hit it had taken. You barely noticed the two idiots arguing in the background as the time passed. That is until you saw your friend in the distance. You squinted to get a better look and smiled when you realized who it was.

This wasn’t the time to be reminiscing of the good ‘ol days. Your life was on the line and so was your dignity. You knew, one way or another, that Ace was going to find out that you were parading around using his name and you didn’t want to be around when he did. 

You glanced back at the ravenette and the redhead, growing agitated at the aggressive looks they were exchanging. 

You began your descent down the hill, carefully crawling down so the ravenette wouldn’t notice your absence. Though, as soon as you did, you saw Luffy round the University building with Law. The two were engaged in a heated exchange, completely oblivious to your presence. You didn’t know what they were arguing about, but you knew Luffy had the upper hand just by the victorious grin he was wearing. 

When Law noticed you in the distance, his expression soured, as if he hadn’t expected you to be there. You smiled at him. Then, his gaze flew over to the hot-headed ravenette and the redhead in the background. Once realizing what was going on, his mood did a total 180, flipping from one of disdain to mild-shock. 

“Torao!” You gestured for him to come. When he didn’t, you called out again, only to be bluntly ignored. 

‘Please, save me!’ You mouthed, ‘Don’t leave me here with them!’ 

The grumpy ravenette quickly bid his friend goodbye before fleeing the scene, obviously aware that he wanted nothing to do with what was going on.

‘Damn it, I guess I’m going to have to get out of this myself.’ 

You held down the hat over your head and started in a silent sprint, quickly creating some distance between you and the troublemakers.

Luffy, confused by Torao’s sudden disappearance, began looking around. When his gaze landed on you, he smiled.

The icy hand of dread gripped at your throat, effectively cutting off your breath. 

‘Please don’t let it be what I think it is.’ You pleaded. 

It wasn’t his smile that concerned you, but the innocent intent it held.

You just knew he was going to call out for you and when he did, you knew it’d attract the attention of the misfits behind you. 

Honestly, at this point, there was nothing you could do. Luffy was a dense idiot and you were just a troublemaker who’d gotten herself into a horrible situation. 

Your friend raised his hand and hollered, “OIIIIII! Y/n! What are you doing here? Oh, is that Ace!” His gaze flicked over to his brother. 

“Ace! Wow, I didn’t expect to see you with Kid and Y/n!” 

You nearly face planted into the ground. You had expected it, but you hadn’t been prepared for it. 

Now you were well and truly beginning to write your eulogy. 

_Here lies the tattered remains of Y/n. May her weary soul find peace._

Ace and Kid glanced back at the commotion, both of their eyes widening at the sight before them. You felt your joints creak as you slowly glimpsed back at the duo, fear overcoming all rationality. Luffy looped his arm around your neck and pulled you into a suffocating hug, laughing merrily as he waved over at his friends. 

“Kid! Ace! I didn’t know you knew each other!” 

Eustass’s tawny eyes narrowed on you, inspecting your obscured form. The instant his gaze met yours, a shit-eating smirk appeared. 

“Well, well, if it isn’t Scooter.” 

You froze like a deer in headlights. 

“K-Kid. I didn’t expect to see you here.” You glanced away and nervously whistled, a droplet of sweat rolling down your temple. 

As if things couldn’t get worse, Luffy dragged you over to the pair, wrapping his other arm around his brother’s waist. 

“Scooter? What--”

“You guys haven’t seen each other for a while haven’t you?” The lanky boy holding you interrupted his brother. 

“Actually, we just did--”

Luffy interrupted you with his nasally ‘Shishishi’. 

‘Why do I even try?’ 

You went limp in Luffy’s arms, attempting to fool the other two into thinking you were dead. Of course, your little ruse didn’t fool them, especially not Kid. 

“So, _Y/n_ , is it?” You heard the hidden malice behind the red-heads voice. 

“About that, I have a good explanation for it.” You held your hands up in surrender. 

“Do tell. We have _all_ the time in the world.” 

You swallowed heavily, your gaze flitted between Ace’s confused look to Kid’s homicidal grin. 

“The thing is, I hit my head and got amnesia. For a good while, I thought my name was Ace until recently and since you’ve been calling me--,” You cleared your throat before whispering, “ _Scooter,_ I may… or may not have forgotten to tell you my real name…” 

“Am… amoeba?” Luffy rolled the word in his mouth. “What’s that?”

“It’s amnesia and it’s memory loss, Luffy.” Ace blunted stated, clearly not entertained by what was going on. 

“I know you’re fucking lying to me.” Kid snapped. 

You gazed away and used Luffy’s infamous suspicious whistle. 

“Now what was that about using my name?” Apparently, that’d been the only thing Ace had retained from the conversation, because his grin only grew wider by the second, as if he’d been proud of it. 

He leaned in closer, a knowing smirk splitting his face. You averted your gaze and sweat-dropped. 

‘Now, I’ve done it… Fuck, this is so embarrassing. He’s going to think I’m a weirdo…” 

Ace knew you had no logical reason as to why he’d been the first name in your mind. In fact, that little piece of information alone was enough to make his day. You’d been thinking about _him_ and only him. It would appear that he wasn't the only one that'd been thinking of the other over the years... 

The only thing that bothered him was the fact that you were associated with Kid and that he’d given you a silly nickname… wait… 

His face froze as he processed that. 

‘Nick...name?’ 

Ace’s smile disappeared in an instant, the blood rushing from his face when he realized who the name Scooter was attached to. 

He’d indirectly insulted you without even knowing who the person was. Flashbacks of their conversation appeared before him, further adding salt to the injury. 

“Hold up, what the fuck is going on here.” Kid’s gaze flickered from Ace’s to yours. “What business do you have with Scooter?” He jutted his finger at the ravenette’s chest. 

“Business?” 

Ace haughtily wrapped an arm around your waist and pulled you closer, so that your face was pressed into his pectoral. 

The action made your skin tingle. 

The very fact that his hat was on your head sent a clear message to the redhead. The ravenette was on cloud nine. 

“We’re… close.” Ace shot the red-head a shit eating smirk. 

“Nope,” You shook your head, “we definitely aren’t.” 

You peeled yourself away from the ravenette, opting to cling onto your bestfriend who was currently distracted by a butterfly fluttering near his nose. The redhead crossed his arms and leered down at Ace, clearly satisfied by your quick denial. 

“And, what about you.” Ace’s eyes narrowed on the taller student. “What business do you have with, _Peep_?”

You almost wanted to laugh. Why did he use your nickname like that? Even if he was trying to sound cool, which he wasn’t, that nickname truly didn’t help. 

“My fucking business with _Scooter_ is my own. Fuck off.”

The tension in the area was so palpable you were sure you could cut it like butter. 

You cleared your throat hesitantly before raising your finger to garner the attention of the two boys. 

“Hey, can I say something here.”

The two looked at you before stating, “No.” 

You deadpanned. 

“Well, okay… Then, can I just leave?

The two quarreling students looked your way again. 

“No, you’re staying right where you are.” 

You threw your hands up and rolled your eyes.

‘What the fuck…’ 

Not only were you ignored, but you were also denied your freedom.

“Kid,” You swallowed the lump in your throat, eager to get this whole problem out of the way. “You came here for something. What was it?”

“What do you think?” He creeped up, already forgetting the hot-headed ravenette in front of him.

A devious smirk stretching his painted lips. “Did you think that your little ruse would go unnoticed?”

You laughed nervously, all the while avoiding the murderous gaze that was pinned to you. 

“I-I have no idea what you’re talking about.” You scratched at your cheek absentmindedly. 

“Oh? You don’t remember?”

As soon as he gestured towards his back, you remembered what you’d done to him that early morning in the library. Maybe you shouldn’t have thrown his textbook back… I mean, any normal student would have probably forgotten, but who were you kidding, this was Eustass fucking Kid, when did he ever forget something?

“Don’t you think you should make up for it?” 

“W-What were you thinking?”

You were hoping he’d give you an easy way out. You didn’t mind paying him back for the injury or treating him out for lunch, but you knew his request would be something out of the realm of normality. Kid wasn’t someone who’d forgive easily. 

“How about I return the favor by giving you a sore spot as well? Wouldn’t you say that's fair enough?” 

“That sounds... weirdly suspicious.”

He grinned mischievously, his tawny eyes ablaze with excitement. 

It was clear he was hinting towards something devious, but you couldn’t quite tell what it was. Granted, you weren’t as dense as Luffy, but you weren’t the smartest either. When it came to relationships or love, you were quite the airhead. 

  
  


_Ace watched_ _the interaction between the two of you._

_What kind of relationship did you have with Eustass? What happened while he was away on his trip abroad?_

_Though he didn’t understand the murkiness that clouded his feelings, he was positive of one thing. He really didn’t like the way Kid was looking at you. Because you weren’t as observant, you never noticed the way the red-heads gaze would follow you, whether in anger… or something else. It was clear he held some type of fondness for you, something you were far too oblivious to notice._

_Ace felt a flame burn to life in the pit of his stomach._

_Were you so dense that you didn’t understand the intent hidden in his words? It was painfully obvious that he was trying to get into your pants and you, being you, gave him the perfect opportunity to._

_Ace felt this possessive need to hold you to him and hide you from the redhead's view._

You cocked your head at Kid, “I don’t understand?”

“What don’t you understand?”

When the redhead went to grip your chin, he was stopped by a firm hand twisting his wrist. Looking down, he found himself immobilized by the ravenette. 

There was a barbaric look in the boy’s eyes, something feral and unhinged. Though Kid felt no fear, he did feel something else, something akin to rage build up in him. 

As soon as he’d seen the primal look, it disappeared, as if it had never existed. It was clear to Kid that there was something more to this Portgas guy. He wasn’t just the friendly person everyone deemed him to be. 

In a split-second, Ace transformed again, returning to his cocky, arrogant self. 

“Didn’t you say you were busy today, Peep?”

“Busy? I never said I was busy--”

The ravenette picked you up as if you weighed no less than a kitten and threw you over his shoulder, promptly walking down the hill. 

He only looked back once to send the redhead a devious grin, his hand wrapping around your midsection possessively. 

Kid leaned back. No, he wasn’t angry right now. If anything, he was feeling competitive. He didn’t quite know why yet, but he knew he wasn’t going to back down.

The redhead cracked his neck and sighed, a vicious grin splitting his face. 

_____________

No matter how much you squirmed, kicked, and whined, Ace wouldn’t let you go. In fact, the more you struggled, the tighter his hold became. You felt your heart beating faster. No wonder Nami warned you about Ace… He was completely different from the hot-headed teen you knew in your youth. Instead of meeting a snot-nosed brat, you were met by a completely different guy.

You really wished you listened to the stories you’d heard from students abroad about Ace.

No longer was he the boy who hated your guts. With his shining new abs and deviously handsome looks came a cockier, more arrogant version of himself. 

‘Still,’ You thought, “he's a teasing brat.’ 

That much didn’t change. 

“Ace, let me go before I kick you in the balls.” 

The ravenette threw his head back and laughed. 

“And what makes you think I’ll let you do that?”

“What makes you think you can stop me?” 

You swung your leg back and aimed towards his sack, only to be stopped when you felt two warm hands encircle your ankles. 

The boy smirked as he stroked small patterns into the soft flash, busting out in laughter when you began thrashing around, a red look to your face. 

“Okay, okay, I concede.” 

Just when you thought he’d let you down, you suddenly found yourself pushed further down his torso. You were now staring at the large, pirate like tattoo inked to his back. 

“You said you were going to let me go…”

“I said I conceded, I never said I was going to let you go.”

“That’s the same thing, you idiot.”

“Well yes, but actually no.” 

You pinched the bridge of your nose and sighed. Since it’d been late in the afternoon, there was no one around to witness your humiliating position. It wasn’t that you hated to be carried, you just hated being carried by Ace. 

“I promise I’ll let you down once we get to the taxi.”

“Taxi?”

The ravenette nodded. 

“Your whole group is gathering at Shakky’s BBQ place.” 

You snapped your fingers, remembering the promise you had made to Nami. 

“That’s right! I completely forgot we were meeting today!” 

Smiling in glee, you remembered that you’d get to see your group of friends. 

“But wait…” You chewed on your lip in thought, something you often did when you were thinking about something. 

“Why are you coming?”

“Why do you think? Luffy wanted me to meet his friends!”

“But who said you could come?”

The ravenette looked back at you, his brow quirked. 

“Luffy?”

“Yea, but he didn’t ask for my permission.”

“Does he need to ask you for permission to invite his _brother_?”

“Well, no, he doesn’t need to ask me for permission to invite anyone except for _you._ ”

The ravenette flicked your thigh teasingly before chuckling, his laugh sending vibrations through your connected bodies. 

“And why is that?”

“Because every time I’m around you, I seem to be in dire need of a therapist for my stress.”

You pouted when Ace continued to howl in laughter at your ‘serious’ problem. 

“Well, that’s too bad, isn’t it? I suppose you’ll have to endure my presence for a while longer, Peep.”

“I guess I can do it for Luffy.” You dramatically sighed. “I’d venture through hell and back for him.”

“But not for me? You wound me, my fair lady.” 

“Why would I?” You indifferently picked your nose, flicking the booger onto the grass below you. 

As the boy jostled you around, you could have sworn you heard a quick, “That’s my girl” ,but when no one said anything, you were left to wonder if you were really going deaf. Maybe, I must have imagined it. 

_____________

  
  


The first thing you did when you arrived at Shakky’s was pull him by his beaded necklace so he was bent to your level. When you had his attention, you gave him a heated glare before dragging your finger against your throat. 

“Sleep with one eye open, dickles.” 

“For you, anything.” He batted his lashes at you. 

Before he let you go, he leaned in, plucking his hat from your head to place it back on his own. You blushed heavily, having already forgotten its existence.

“15-1.”

You cringed as you remembered his large body tackling yours into the grass.

“Don’t think I forgot.” he winked before leaving you behind. 

You entered the restaurant with him following close behind, waving over to your group of friends.

Nami stood up in front of her seat, wide eyed and smiling. She walked over to you and grabbed your hand, promptly pulling you towards the table.

“Y/n- _swannnn_ ~!” You gave the blonde chef an embarrassed smile as he swooned over you, causing a certain mint-head to groan in disgust. 

“Cut it out, shitty cook.” 

“What did you say, Marimo-head?” The blonde whirled on his friend, his fist raised in the air. 

“What, you have a problem with me or something?”

You drowned out their bickering as you focused on the chattering group of individuals in front of you. 

Though they argued, their bond was as thick as blood. Nothing they could do or say would ever change that. 

Robin noticed your odd demeanor and invited you over, offering a small smile. 

“It’s been a while since we’ve all gotten together, hasn’t it?” She commented, her gaze drifting towards her group of _nakama_ ’s. 

“It has…” You sighed in nostalgia. 

Everyone’s been busy ever since the start of October. With midterms and exams hounding their asses, they had no time to spend with others. That said, Luffy’s troublesome antics and personality wasn’t helping to destress the situation either. Every moment you spent together was almost guaranteed to be enjoyable.

You maneuvered around the spiderwebs of legs and bags to get to your usual spot between Luffy and Zoro. 

Ever since you met Luffy’s friends in the start of your freshman year, you made it your habit to pester him with annoying questions about his katanas. It wasn’t that you were obsessed with him, per say, you were more invested in his swords. 

Though odd, they reminded you of Mihawk. You couldn’t say why, but there was some sort of comfort you felt when you watched Zoro train with them. It reminded you of the times as a kid when you’d sit in your father’s dojo, sipping on orange juice as you watched him hack and slash at the air with his monstrous blade. 

Luffy sprang up in surprise when he heard you sit next to him. You chuckled at his shock and offered a quick, “Yo, Luffy!”

He returned the welcome with a crooked grin, bits of meat peeking from the corners of his mouth. 

Zoro looked over his shoulder to you, offering a nod of acknowledgment at your presence. He then slid a plate of food over your spot, huffing in annoyance when Luffy tried to steal it. 

“Luffy, that’s not for you.”

“Why? Isn’t this a buffet?”

“No, it isn’t.”

“Really? Then what was the point of coming here?!”

“Because it was convenient for everyone.” The marimo head raised his hand and beckoned the bartender over, ordering several pints of beer for himself. 

He’d need at least several gallons of alcohol in him to tolerate this group for the rest of the night, especially Y/n and Luffy. 

You slid into your spot and dove into your food, scarfing it within a minute of receiving it. Once you’d finished, you tapped Zoro’s shoulder, attracting his attention again.

“What? You need something?”

You smiled deviously at him. 

“What’s that look mean. Wait, Y/n…” he added, a tone of warning slipping into his voice. 

Yup, he definitely wasn’t drunk enough to deal with this shit… 

“What are you thinking--Oi!” He growled as you made to grab your wrists. 

You held each chopstick in the other hand, imitating Zoro’s sword stance. You then plunged the utensils into his plate, efficiently digging into his steak. With a loud, “Oni-giri!”, you pulled the portion away and popped it into your mouth.

“You’re going to regret doing that.” He grumbled, redirecting his attention to his plate. He meanvered his body around so that it was covered from your view. 

“And you, Luffy, don’t even think about it.” Zoro huffed. 

Confused, you glanced over at your friend, breaking out into a laugh when you saw his long arm pathetically hovering over your head, fork held determinately over your plate. 

“Were you trying to pull a fast one on me?” 

The two of you fought over the fork, complaining when the other gained the upper hand. 

Ace watched as you bickered with his brother and the moss-head from a distance, a feeling of displeasure curling in his stomach again. When did you become this friendly with these people? You were acting the exact way you used to when you were still friends with the brothers all those years ago. 

When had you opened up and accepted… more friends other than them?

It would seem he wasn’t the only one who had changed over the years. 

The younger ravenette noticed his brother’s lack of presence and beckoned him over excitedly, waving his stick of meat in the air to attract his attention. 

When he did, Ace moved around the bustling restaurant to get where he was, but instead of sitting next to his brother, he plopped right down between Zoro and you, bearing down on you uncomfortably close. 

The both of you knew that there was a vacant spot next to Luffy. Yet, this idiot of a human decided to pick the one seat that wasn't available. 

You flinched in pain as his body pressed into your left arm, effectively hitting the spot you’d broken a while ago. 

Noticing your discomfort, he reeled back, his eyes widened in worry. In fact, the whole group had gone quiet, all focused on your arm. 

“Are you okay, Y/n?” Nami asked, a tinge of concern in her voice. 

“Yea, I’m fine. It’s just… my arm still hurts.” 

“Oh, you mean the broken one?” Franky chimed in. He broke out into his infamous pose and howled, “That looks SUPERRR~ painful!” 

You laughed at his joke before growing serious again, uncomfortable by the odd stare Ace was giving you. 

“You broke your arm?”

“Yeah, it was pretty funny.” You joked, plucking a piece of meat from Luffy’s plate, smiling slyly when the younger ravenette tackled you for it. 

“It wasn’t funny at all! I was so worried for my precious Y/n-swan!” Sanji wailed, his hand thrown dramatically over his eyes. 

“Don’t be disgusting, prince of the dumbass kingdom.” Zoro nonchalantly took a sip of his beverage, his eyes half-lidded in boredom. 

“What did you say, you stupid muscle head!” 

“Do you want to fight or something, Mr. Nosebleed?”

“Bring it on, you directionally challenged idiot!” 

You plugged your ears and pleaded, “Guys, cut it out, someones going to die here if you continue fighting like that.”

“Who?” Sanji glanced towards you, completely ignoring the fuming mint-head. 

“Me.” You stated bluntly. 

Zoro rolled his eyes and swung back his drink, draining it in one shot. 

“I need more alcohol.”

“Don’t give him anymore, Shakky!” Sanji hollered, a satisfied smirk on his face as he observed the enraged marimo. 

While the two continued to butt heads, you were entirely focused on the intense look Ace was giving you. A droplet of sweat rolled down your brow as you looked at everyone but him.

“About that broken arm... W _hen_ did this happen exactly?” Ace offered you a close-eyed smile, one you knew was associated with something bad. 

“Crazy story, actually.” You attempted to appear normal, leaning back in your chair and casually chewing on a stick of meat to pass the act. “I was cooking sausages when I suddenly slipped and broke my arm on the toilet.” 

Usopp and Chopper quickly covered their mouths to conceal their laughter, but their shaking shoulders were telltale hints of their amusement. 

“You were cooking sausages… in a bathroom?”

You nodded in affirmation, your face stoic as you confirmed his story. 

“Then, I dropped a sausage and slipped on it. Is that so hard to believe?” 

“You know how dumb that story sounds, right?” Ace raised a brow at you. 

Usopp leaned over the table and added, “Wait till you hear how ridiculous the real story is.” 

“It's so much worse.” Chopper insinuated. 

“Is that so?” Now it was Ace’s turn to lean back and smirk. 

You pinched your lips and whistled nervously. 

‘Usopp and Chopper, don’t think I won’t get you back for this betrayal.’ You thought to yourself. 

“Luffy, do you know what happened?”

The young ravenette tore a chunk of his meat before glancing up at his brother, confusion evident in his eyes. 

“You mean, Y/n’s arm?” Luffy puckered his lips and thought about it for a moment, “We jumped.”

“Jumped?”

“Yup!” The boy recreated the scene with his hands.

Ace couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the story, it was so much worse than the little tale you made up. 

“You jumped out of your school window to escape the teachers?” 

Both Chopper and Usopp banged their hands on the table in amusement, unable to keep their food in their mouth as they fought back the desire to howl in laughter. 

Your mouth quirked in delight as you observed their delight. Well, at least someone was enjoying your painful experience. 

That said, you weren’t quite prepared for the slap on the back you earned from Ace. He wrapped his arm around your neck and pulled you closer, a large smile stretching his lips. 

You still couldn't get used to his bare flesh pressing into you. Why was he so... naked?

It was clear the other girls in the restaurant were ogling, I mean, how could they not, he was practically half-naked. It wasn't that you minded the stares that the two of you got, but it was certainly embarrassing. You didn't want to be associated with a half-nude idiot like him. That said, you were dying to know where he got the new tattoos from. What did they mean?

“So, Luffy’s been getting you into trouble while I was away?”

“What do you think, you freckled idiot, he’s my best friend.” You grinned back at him. 

Once the group had time to settle in, Nami finally began the announcements, raising her mug of beer to toast to Ace’s return.

“Welcome home, Ace! Although we barely know you, we consider you as one of our own!” Franky howled, pumping his fists into the air. 

Robin calmed her excitable boyfriend, offering him a pint or two to shush him. Usopp and Chopper, on the other hand, were dancing on the table in merriment, enjoying the light buzz the alcohol had caused them. 

Nami observed the unusual dynamic you shared with Ace.

Her curiosity had first piqued when she saw you enter the restaurant with Ace. Although you hadn’t been attentive to what was going on, Ace certainly was. His eyes had never left you, even when you had gone to fool around with his brother. 

The second time Nami had found herself interested in your relationship with the handsome ravenette was when he’d been relentlessly teasing you about your arm. She'd heard from a couple of her acquaintances that Ace never teased or fooled around others, especially females. Though he was overly friendly and quite the charmer, he never seemed as open with other women as he was with you. 

You must have had quite the past with him. 

'Your eyes tell all, Y/n...' 

It was then she’d figured it out, a smile gracing her features. 

‘I see, so that’s what it's about.’ 

The ginger kept the thought to herself, feeling a spark of genuine relief when she looked over at you. 

‘I’m glad…’ 

It was then that she’d decided to hatch a plan. 

The ginger leaned in coyly, her face moving closer to Ace’s as she asked, “So, tell us, what did you do abroad?” 

Ace’s eyes flitted over to yours, shining with hidden intent. You, as oblivious as ever, hadn't noticed the look he was giving you, so you returned to fooling around with Luffy, the two of you tossing bets on how long it’d take for Sanji to notice that his food was gone. 

“We traveled all over Europe, but my group of friends mostly stayed to study in Scotland.” 

“Oh~, that sounds like fun! I’ve heard from many that you’re a popular student, but I can’t say I’ve ever seen you around campus before.” 

Ace laughed at Nami’s comment before replying with, “I finished my bachelors way before you guys were in college and by the time you lot became freshmen, I was already abroad for my masters.” 

“I see…" She batted her eyes at the tall ravenette, "Do tell, have you been with _anyone_ during your time there?”

Ace’s eyes narrowed at the oddly specific question, attempting to determine the hidden intent behind her inquiry. 

Nami gave him a moment to process her plan. She had no doubt he’d quickly find out what she was trying to do, he was a smart guy, afterall. Well, far smarter than his two other brothers. 

When he finally caught on, his eyes widened before narrowing. He was wary of her, that much was obvious, but he didn’t want to give up the opportunity to join in on the scheme.

With that said, the two continued off where they left off on their conversation. 

“Of course, I had a couple girlfriends here and there, but they never lasted long. I knew I had to come back home eventually.”

“That’s a shame.” Nami’s nails raked against the male’s tan arm, making sure to hover over the inky tattoo on his shoulder. “I would’ve done my best to keep you.” 

You perked up from your position, curious as to what was going on behind you. When you looked over, you found Sanji fuming in his spot while Zoro was doing his best to keep himself out of the situation. 

“Oh my.” Robin commented, covering her mouth in surprise. 

Franky bust out his pose and yowled, “That’s SUPER~ sexy, Nami!” 

You laughed out loud at that, amused by the odd situation. Unfortunately, neither Nami nor Ace found your reaction entertaining. It was the exact opposite of what they wanted. 

Ace cleared his throat before starting again. 

“Wow, I didn’t think Luffy’s _friend_ was this _ravishing_.” 

Nami threw her hand out and scoffed haughtily, “My, how charming.”

The two forced out over-enthusiastic laughs at the others' comment. 

It was so horribly… unnatural and weird. 

You couldn’t help but reel back from the second hand embarrassment you got as you watched their cringey reenactment of what appeared to be some cheesy soap opera. Apparently, you weren’t the only one who found it hard to watch, judging by the way everyone was throwing out the odd cough or murmur at the horrible acting. 

“Ace, I understand that you’re detrimentally horny, but--” You gestured towards the exit, “can you take it somewhere, you’re harshing my juju… and everyone else’s vibe.”

Usopp, Chopper, and Zoro nodded a little too vigorously at your comment, the three as eager as you to see the cringe-inducing duo go away. 

Both Nami and Ace mentally face planted at your obliviosness. It wasn’t like they were doing it for fun in the first place… That said, if this didn’t work, they weren’t quite sure what would, so they quickly ditched their plan in favor of enjoying the rest of the event in normalcy. 

Sanji threw up his fists and yelled at Ace, calling him a ‘hideous brute’ and that he was unworthy of the ‘goddess’ Nami. 

_______________

The rest of the night was spent drinking and enjoying one another’s company. Once, the sun had slipped past the horizon and the nightly lights blinked on, everyone decided that it was time to turn in. Zoro, slightly buzzed, went off in the complete opposite direction of his dorm, only to be pulled back by Sanji. The two bickered as they headed off towards their complex, giving the group a quick ‘goodbye’ before disappearing into the darkness. Franky and Robin were next. They quickly said their farewells to the remaining bystanders as they too disappeared. By the time it had gone completely dark, most of the group had departed. The only remainders were you, Nami, Luffy, and Ace. 

Luffy was standing next to Ace, fast asleep in his brother’s arms as he murmured something about meat. 

Nami shot the young ravenette a stern look before going off to idle near you. 

“So, I suppose this is goodnight for now.” Luffy heaved his brother up before glancing over at you, his dark eyes obscured by the night. 

“Yeah…” You looked down at his shoes, suddenly feeling some unusual nervousness creep into your nerves. 

Nami swatted your arm, chuckling at the odd exchange. 

“Don’t be so quiet, that’s unlike you, Y/n. Just say your goodbyes so we can go. I’m freezing my butt off.” She pulled her coat closer to her chest, suppressing a shiver that suddenly came over her. 

“You’re right, my bad.” 

Your friend took a step back to give you some semblance of privacy. 

“I…” You trailed off, unsure of what to say. 

Thankfully, it seemed that Ace knew exactly what was on your mind, something he'd often done in your childhood. You had no idea how, but he was an expert on telling your mood or determining your thoughts. You couldn't quite say the same about him though. Maybe that's because you paid more attention to his brother than you actually did with him. 

“I know we weren’t the best of _friends--_ ” You smirked at word friend, but said nothing more so that he could continued with what he was saying, “but, for the most part--” 

He stepped in closer so that he was standing directly over you. From this point of view, you were still shocked by how much taller he was then you. When had he grown so much? Where was that scruffy face kid that you had known in your childhood?

A feeling of queasiness overcame you as concentrated on maintaining eye contact with him. 

‘Why… Why can’t I look him in the eyes? Shit, I’m such an idiot for acting like this…’

How could a person change this much?

Ace tilted his head and gave you a light smirk, his freckles scrunching up as he smiled. 

“I’m glad I got to see you again, Peep Peep.” 

You shoved down the nervousness you felt to peer backup at him, offering a small smile. 

If the light blinking overhead had been a little brighter, you might have been able to see the light pinkness dusting the ravenette's cheeks. 

'Fuck, she's adorable.' Ace suppressed the urge to ruffle your hair, an action he'd often done in his youth. 

“Me too, dickles.” 

You stood on your tiptoes and reached forward, giving the ravenette’s hat a light flick. He looked taken aback for a second before his telltale grin reappeared, this time, far more confident. You were reminded of the time you had gifted him his hat… 

It so happened that the two of you were recreating the exact moment that had happened all those years ago. 

Nami gazed at the two from a distance, a warm smile on her face as she observed the tall ravenette leaning over the shorter girl. To a stranger, Ace’s grin might have looked like an ordinary one, but to Nami, it looked like an expression of pure joy. Your reaction was no different. The two radiated the same energy--one of contentedness and bliss. 

‘Hopeless idiots.’ She thought, a feeling of bure bliss blossoming in her heart. 

How long had it been since she’d seen your shy side again? It wasn’t everyday that you acted this bashfully around a boy. In fact, she’d never seen this type of reaction from you before...

Who exactly was this boy to you and what were you to him? Was there something more behind the enemy act?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I couldn't get Ace's homecoming party into this chapter! Fret not, it shall appear in the next!  
> Much love! I appreciate each and every comment I get! They really make my day!


	9. Crisis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I lied... The party isn't this chapter. It's either the next one or the one after.

You woke up early the next day, dragging yourself out of bed to trudge to the bathroom you shared with Nami. 

Your throat was parched and your eyes were bloodshot from the previous night's occurrences. 

‘Stupid Zoro, he should’ve just let me win the drinking game…’ You sighed. ‘I wish I could have held his swords. Just once, at the very least…’ 

It had been your longtime dream of yours to be able to examine his swords, seeing as how you were a blade fanatic like him. 

Sighing once again, you washed your face and scrubbed at the dark bags hanging from your eyes. 

Once you've brushed your teeth and taken your first dump of the day, you finally felt somewhat ready to conquer the world. 

The morning was cool, crisp, and refreshing. A chill breeze had flown into your room when you’d left the small window open the night prior. 

Rubbing the remnants of sleep from your eyes, you made for your haphazardly arranged dresser, fishing out the best outfit you could. 

After gathering your hair into a messy bun, you slid into a pair of washed-out converse and made your way down to the University cafeteria. 

Nami was nowhere to be found. 

Weaving through the different halls, you finally found her lounging outside, chatting up her sister, Nojiko. 

Her outfit wasn’t unlike yours, but it was far more revealing. She had her sleeves rolled up to her elbows and her long hair was pulled out of her face as she excitedly chatted up her sibling. 

You pulled up next to her, heaving a heavy sigh as you massaged your thumping temple. Maybe you shouldn’t have agreed to have a small drinking game with Zoro after all… 

How were you expected to pay attention to class now?

“Oh, Y/n! Good morning. How’d you sleep?” She teased, pinching the sides of your cheeks affectionately. 

“Horrible…” You croaked. 

“I’d say so.” 

She waved her sister goodbye before refocusing on you, pulling at the odd strand that stuck out from your hoodie. 

The two of you walked towards the University cafe, picking up your usual order of coffee and biscuits. Instead of caffeine, though, you opted for water and a light sandwich to fill your stomach. You weren’t in the mood for something heavy at the moment. 

“So, there’s been something I’ve been dying to know since last night.” Nami pulled you down into a nearby table outside, her hands wrapped around your wrists. 

“Yea?” 

“What exactly is your relationship with that boy?”

You quickly scarfed down your sandwich, wiping the remaining crumbs around your mouth with your sleeve. 

“Which boy? Luffy?”

“No, silly, I mean the more handsome one.”

You thought about her words for a moment, confused by what she meant by them.

“Yea… Luffy.” You restated. 

“No, the taller one! You know what I mean. He loves to go out half-naked, flaunting off those golden brown abs of his. The one with the freckles!” She snapped her fingers.

“Oh…” You sucked in your teeth, producing several layers of double chins as you leaned back. “You mean dickl--Ace?”

“Him!”

You thought about it for a moment.

“Umm, I’m not sure, to be honest. I mean, we kind of grew up together back when I lived with Luffy and Torao, but I wouldn't say we have something special..."

“Really now? I have a hard time believing that.” She propped her chin on her hand and gazed at you intently, a knowing smile gracing her lips. 

“Well, we were never on the best of terms when hung out. Actually, now that I think about it, I don’t think he really liked me.” You scratched the back of your head and laughed, recalling all of the times he’d attacked you out of nowhere.

“Speaking of Ace, I’m more curious about how you feel about him.”

“About Ace? What do you mean?” Nami cocked her head to the side in confusion. 

“You know what I mean. I remember that… odd flirtatious conversation you had with him last night.” You internally cringed at the mere thought of it. 

“Oh, that.” Nami laughed nervously and glanced away, as if she’d been embarrassed by the memory. “It was nothing.”

“What do you mean? If you ignore the horrible flirting and the cringe-worthy performances, I think you’d be a pretty good couple, considering things.”

Nami stared at you, her eyes-half lidded, unimpressed by your words. 

“You were indirectly insulting me, weren’t you, Y/n.” She pinched you on your side before scoffing into her coffee, “Besides, he’s not my type.”

“Hey!” You rubbed at your sore spot. “If he wasn’t your type, then why were you flirting with him?”

“I have my reasons.” She ended it at that, taking a long, silent sip of her beverage. 

“If you say so…” You gingerly lifted your water to your lips, quenching your parched throat. 

“In any case,” Your friend glanced over at her watch, “Isn’t your class at 9:00 am? Y/n, it’s already 12.”

You passed out in your seat, your astral form leaving your body. Nami laughed at your over exaggeration before lifting the two of you up. 

“Come on, before you miss your next class!” 

The two of you said your goodbyes before splitting up. 

You sprinted at full speed to your econ’s class, clutching your bag to your chest to prevent it from slipping through your arms. 

‘Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. I really shouldn’t have done that drinking game with Zoro!’ You mentally berated yourself for the bad decision. 

At this point, there was really nothing you could do about it. 

You had made it to your second class just on time. Briefly before the clock struck 12, you were in the first seat you could find, smoothly sliding out your laptop and utensils. The other students filtered in after you, murmuring tired ‘good mornings’ and spreading the daily gossip of the day. 

That day, you were made to pair up with nearby students for an upcoming project. Fortunately, you’d gotten sorted with some of the more academically inclined students in your class, versus the ones you’d rather not be paired with… mainly people like you. 

You smiled up at the stoic ginger that sat next to you. He had an odd x-shaped scar on his chin that you noticed almost right away. 

When he strode over to your side, you couldn’t help the way your eyes flew out of your head at his height. Boy, was he tall. 

He extended his hand cooly over to you, one you immediately gripped, offering a firm shake. 

“I suppose you’re Dracule Y/n.” You flinched at his use of your last name. 

You weren’t quite used to people actually using it. 

“And you must be X… Drake?” You replied hesitantly. 

“You can just call me Drake, the X is unnecessary.”

“Right. I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

Your other partners arrived soon after, giving out their introductions to the two of you. Once you’d done that, the four of you decided to schedule a time and place to meet for the project. 

The class ended fairly quickly after that and your other ones weren’t much different. Other than the occasional quiz and the extra homework assignment, you easily breezed through your classes. You sat through the lectures and made sure to keep tidy notes of what was said, not wanting to deal with the stress of failing a course. 

____________

After your classes, you ran to the nearest bathroom, huddling in a stall as you clutched at your grumbling stomach. You really shouldn’t have eaten that jalapeno sandwich. Now, your guts were screaming for sweet mercy and you had the feeling that your #2 was going to be… catastrophic. 

‘A school bathroom, of all things.’ You cried to yourself. 

As soon as you sat on the toilet and relieved yourself, you heard a couple of girls walk in. Their heels clicked on the hard tile as they made their way to the mirror. You heard the pop and the snap of lipstick capsules open and the shuffling of clothes when they readjusted their outfits. 

“Have you heard the latest buzz?” You heard one girl say. 

“Oh, you mean about the party this weekend?”

You tried your damndest to stay quiet while also attempting to alleviate the cramping in your stomach. 

‘Of all times…’ You whined internally. 

“What are you going to wear to it?”

“I’m not sure yet, but I definitely want it to be sexy and revealing. How else am I going to get his attention?” 

“Honey, as if, I’ve heard from others that he dated quite a few people during his trip abroad.”

“But you don’t know what went down between us. We broke up right before he left for his trip, so I’m thinking that this party will be the perfect opportunity to reconnect… and hopefully spark up old feelings.” 

“Right! I completely forgot you dated!”

You heard a cacophony of giggles and more shuffling. 

‘Were they talking about Ace? Did he have a homecoming party?’ 

You cringed and shook your head. 

‘As if I’d go…’ You thought. 

“So, this homecoming party. Where exactly is it held?”

“Don’t you know? Some of the upperclassmen girls--you know those rich, stuck up bitches that cling to him--”

“Yea! You mean those girls from the…” You heard snapping and a loud ‘aha!’, “Those bitches from Cali!” 

“Yeah, those! Well, apparently they rented out an entire mansion near our university for the party.”

“Wow… I mean, don’t get me wrong, I fucking hate them, but props for them for doing that. I imagine the party will be quite big!”

You rolled your eyes at their comment. Who’d even go to that stupid party? Certainly not you. You had better things to do in your free time, like catch up on the latest season of your favorite show or try out the new Assassin’s Creed game that came out. 

“Of course it’ll be fabulous! They also hired a group of chefs from downtown and bought the best beverages!”

“I’m so excited to go.”

“Same here, sister.” 

The two laughed before leaving the bathroom, their long heels clicking loudly over the rush of your toilet. 

You hastily zipped up your jeans and sped out of the stall, quickly scrubbing your hands and getting the hell out of dodge. 

After all was done and said, you were right back in your dorm, hunched over your textbooks as you threw yourself into your homework. The work was hard. Really hard. You had to pull up several websites and course lectures to even understand the content. You guessed on some of the answers, praying that the professors wouldn’t go over them during class. 

Your best bet was probably begging Sanji and Robin for help on it. You couldn’t rely on Zoro, much less Luffy. 

You were brought out of your daze when you heard your phone ‘ping’. Picking up the device, you scrolled through your lock screen, eyes widening at the array of new messages. 

_ Pirate King (AKA, Monkey. D Luffy) has made a new group chat. Luffy has added Nami, Zoro, Sanji, Chopper, Franky, Usopp, Sabo, Law, Bepo, Shachi, Penguin, Kid, Killer, Heat, Wire, Ace, Marco, Thatch, and (3+ more).  _

You narrowed your eyes in suspicion. 

‘That’s quite the list…’ 

**I got Bitches on My Dick**

**Usopp:** What kind of group name is that?

**Chopper:** I think Law’s friends changed it. 

Nami changed the group name to, ‘ **Ace’s Homecoming Party.** ’

**Shachi:** Hey!

**Thatch** : No one wanted to see that, bro. 

**Nami** : What’s the point of this group chat?

**Luffy:** It’s for Ace’s party!!!

**Zoro:** Don’t bother adding me, I’m not going.

**Sanji:** Good, no one wants you there anyway. 

**Zoro:** What the hell did you say to me, you hentai cook!

**Sanji** : Nami-swannn, Robin-chwannn, are you guys going?

**Nami:** Of course, why wouldn’t I? This is Luffy’s brother!

**Zoro:** Don’t ignore me, you fucking idiot!

**Nami:** Guys, you have your own group chat just for arguing. If you want to fight, do it over there.

**Sanji:** Don’t worry, my darling, I won’t pay any attention to this buffoon.

**Nami:** Okay, so anyways. We want to know who’ll be attending! 

**Sabo:** I’ll definitely be there with my girlfriend, Koala!

**Luffy:** You have a grill-friend???

**Sabo:** It’s pronounced girlfriend and before you ask, no, she’s not grilled. 

**Sabo:** And I’ve been dating her for over two years now. ._. 

_ Luffy sent a voice message.  _

_ “Hellooooo! I’m hungryyyy, someone order me some pizzaaaa~”  _ Before he could finish his sentence, you heard heavy footsteps and the sound of a fist connecting with flesh. Luffy’s ear piercing laugh could be heard before it cut out, static drowning out the yell you heard from Nami and Luffy’s shriek. 

**Chopper:** Luffy, are you okay? Do you need medical attention?

**Zoro:** Someone, start ordering coffins.

**Sanji:** Just because you asked, no. 

**Zoro:** You want to say that again?

**Sanji:** Gladly. 

**Sanji:** No.

**Zoro:** okay, I’m going over to your dorm. 

**Luffy:** A fight??? WHERE?

**Nami:** Ignore him. 

**Nami:** So, who’s attending. 

**Usopp:** I suddenly have the, ‘Must-not-attend-party, something-bad-might-happen’ disease. 

**Chopper** : Oh no, is it serious??? 

**Usopp** : I think I might die if I go. 

**Robin:** Oh my. 

**Franky:** He’s being SUPER~ dramatic. 

**Nami: ^^**

**Marco:** I’m going-yoi.

**Thatch:** Same here! Wouldn’t miss out on a party for my bro. 

**Marco:** It’s been a while since we’ve been back, so this is a great way to get reconnected with some old friends!

**Luffy:** Ah! Ace’s friends!

**Marco:** Yo, Luffy-yoi.

**Law** : What is this?

**Bepo:** Law! You’re finally here! It’s about the party for Ace! 

**Penguin:** Are you going?

**Law:** No, I’m busy. 

**Shachi:** But you said you weren’t busy this weekend. 

**Law:** ...

**Law:** Now I am. 

**Kid:** What the fuck is this bullshit?

**Luffy:** Oh, Jaggy! You should come, it's Ace’s party!

**Killer:** I don’t think that’d be a very good idea… considering what happened the other day… 

**Heat:** What happened? 

**Wire:** Nothing important. 

**Kid:** First, fuck Ace. Second, as if I’d go to something that fucking boring. Third, fuck you, Trafalgar. 

**Law:** How did I even get roped into this.

**Kid:** Your attitude is shitty as always. 

**Law:** I haven’t even done anything, you stupid troll doll. 

**Kid:** The fuck you say? 

**Kid:** Your fucking face irriates me. 

**Kid:** The next time I see you, I’ll beat the shit out of you. Same goes for you, prissy boy. 

**Ace:** The first thing I get is a death threat. 

**Ace:** I’d like to see you try, ginger. 

**Kid:** You’ll piss your pants the second we get into a serious fight. 

**Law:** This is pointless. 

**Kid:** Shut the fuck up, Law. 

**Ace:** Shut the fuck up, lanky bastard. 

**Law:** … 

**Nami:** So… I'm guessing that neither of you are attending.

_ Kid sent a picture.  _ All that could be seen was a blurry picture of a middle finger. 

**Nami:** At least his nail polish was cute. What color do you think it was?

**Robin:** I believe it’s maroon. 

_ Kid left the chat.  _

**Marco:** Yikes. 

**Marco:** Anyways, when you did log in, Ace?

**Ace:** Just now. Came back from my workout. What’s this about a party?

**Sabo:** You don’t even know about your own party?!

**Ace:** I’ve had more important things to do. 

**Sabo:** Like taking a long, hard look at your face in the mirror? 

**Ace:** Exactly. 

**Usopp:** That’s what she said. 

A few minutes had passed before a cacophony of texts appeared, completely blowing up your phone. 

**Sanji:** Shut up. 

**Zoro:** Just stop talking. 

**Penguin:** Kick him out. 

**Franky:** Super unfunny. 

**Usopp:** Damn, why y'all pressed?

**Luffy:** What does, that’s why she said mean? 

**Chopper:** That’s what she said. 

_ Chopper was kicked from the groupchat.  _

**Shachi:** Ayoooo, stop the cap!

**Nami:** Let’s get back on track! Zoro, first of all, you’re coming to the party. Second of all, no backtalk. 

**Zoro:** No. 

**Nami:** There’s alcohol. 

**Zoro:** … 

**Zoro:** How much.

**Nami:** I’m guessing there’s enough to supply a small country. 

**Zoro:** … 

**Zoro:** Fine. 

**Sanji:** Predictable. 

**Nami:** If you guys fight one more time, I’ll personally make it my mission to kill you. 

**Sanji:** It won’t happen, Nami-swannn~!”

**Zoro:** Acting like a lapdog now, curly brow?

**Sanji:** I’ll kill you. 

**Zoro:** Try it.

**Nami:** GUYS!

Tired of reading through the hundreds of messages, you turned your phone over and placed it on silent, returning to the homework grind. 

An hour later, you found yourself growing curious about the texts again. 

Once you were burned out from all the math equations, you decided to just check a few of the messages. 

You were horrified to find a hundred missed calls and thousands of messages addressed to you. 

Your finger shook as it hesitantly clicked the text icon. You were immediately brought into the chaotic mess, your phone vibrating at the abundance of messages. 

Sabo changed the group name to, ‘ **Ace’s Home-cuming Party** ’. 

**Ace:** Sus. 

**Luffy:** Sus. 

**Zoro:** Sus. 

**Penguin** : Sus. 

_ Luffy sent a picture.  _

It was a blurry picture of his nostril. 

**Luffy:** Guy’s, there’s a massive booger in my nose!

**Nami:** Luffy, stop doing disgusting things before I go over there and beat you senseless. 

**Zoro:** Bro. 

**Sanji:** Luffy, you’re disturbing the ladies. I’ll kill you.

**Sabo:** …

**Ace:** … 

**Ace:** How big is it?

**Luffy:** The size of my pinky!

**Sabo:** Take a picture. 

**Luffy:** On it!

**Nami:** DON’T SEND IT TO THE GROUP CHAT.

_ Luffy sent a picture. _

**Nami:** Okay… You asked for it. 

**Law:** He got what he deserved.

**Luffy:** ASLJALSKDJALSD--

**Sabo:** LUFFY?

**Nami:** Don’t worry, he’s only unconscious. 

**Ace:** Resquiescat In Pace. 

**Shachi:** May he rest in peace. 

**Franky:** SUPERRRR~

**Usopp:** What was the point of sending that, Franky?

**Franky:** Because I felt like it. 

**Usopp:** Okay… Anyways, Chopper says he wants to be added back.

**Sanji:** No. 

**Zoro:** No. 

**Killer:** No. 

**Wire:** No. 

**Nami:** I’m not going to.

**Nami:** In any case, I feel like there’s someone missing… 

**Sabo:** Like Chopper? 

**Nami:** No, other than him. 

The chat was silent for a couple minutes before it continued again. 

**Robin:** Don’t you mean, Y/n?

**Nami:** That’s right!! She hasn’t said anything this entire time!

**Ace:** I heard Y/n's name. What’s going on. 

**Sabo:** ._.

You sweatdropped. 

**Nami:** Y/n, are you coming to the party? I won’t take no for an answer.

**Ace:** Of course she’s coming, why wouldn’t she.

**Nami:** I wonder why… 

**Law:** It’s obvious she’s avoiding you, nim-wit.

**Ace:** Wouldn’t you just like that. ;)

**Law:** … 

**Law:** Is she attending?

**Ace:** Wouldn’t you like to know? ;)

**Sabo:** What’s with the repetitive message? You sound like a broken record.

**Ace:** Whether she attends or not is none of your business, lanky bastard. 

**Law** : … 

**Nami:** Okay, I don’t think she’s going to answer. Everyone, start spamming her. Luffy, you too. 

**Sanji:** Y/n-channnnn!!

**Robin:** Y/n.

**Shachi:** Y/n!

**Penguin:** Y/n!

**Luffy:** OIIIIIIIIII! Y/n!!!!!

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Luffy:** Y/n

**Nami:** Okay, this is useless. Can you call her instead? 

**Luffy:** Yup!

_ Fifty missed calls from Luffy. Five missed calls from Nami.  _

**Shachi** : Maybe she’s sleeping or something? 

**Nami:** No, knowing her, she’s probably ignoring us. 

**Robin:** Oh my, what if she died?

**Usopp:** Robin, don’t say something so morbid! T_T

**Zoro:** Someone, find her IP address. 

**Sanji:** Even if you had her address, you wouldn’t even know how to get there. You’d probably get lost. 

**Zoro:** You wanna say that again?

**Nami:** Wait, don’t do that! I live with her! I don’t want any weirdos coming to our front door. 

**Bepo:** I have the address. :)

**Usopp:** Yooo, that’s mad creepy, dude.

**Zoro:** Not cool. 

**Sanji:** Not cool at all. 

**Robin:** What if he sneaks in and murders her?

**Bepo:** Woah, woah woah! I thought you guys wanted someone to find it!

**Nami:** Read the earlier texts. ^^

**Penguin:** Congratulations, you played yourself. 

**Law:** … 

**Law:** What’s the address.

**Ace:** Why the fuck would you need to know that? Bepo, give me the address, but don’t give it to the lanky bastard. 

**Nami:** Both of you are being creepy. Bepo, don’t give either of them the address. 

**Bepo:** I won’t, don’t worry. Lmao. 

**Ace:** Wait, think about it for a second. If you gave me the address, then the infamous Portgas D. Ace would have to grant you a favor. 

**Bepo** : … 

**Law:** Don’t do it. It’s not worth it. 

**Nami:** Y/n might just kill you if you gave it to him, Bepo. 

**Ace:** Don’t listen to her. 

_ Bepo left the chat.  _

**Nami:** Phew. 

**Law:** … 

**Ace:** Damn it. 

**Nami:** So, is there any way we can get in contact with her?

**Ace:** Wait, I might have just the thing. 

_ Ace sent a picture.  _

You balked as soon as you saw it. It was an ugly picture of you back when you were still a snot-nosed brat. Your face was bent an odd angle as you were sleeping next to Luffy. It was clear that someone had drawn on your face, because there were clear doodles over your cheeks and your eyelids. A booger-bubble was expanding from your nose as your mouth was left agape. 

It was a horrible picture… 

**Sabo:** I remember that! LMAOOOO

**Luffy:** Hey! Delete that picture!

**Ace:** Why should I? ;)

**Luffy:** Because I look weird. 

‘Gee, thanks, Luffy.’ You think to yourself. 

**Ace:** Don’t worry, Luffy, you always look weird, but Y/n looks worse than you. 

**Sabo:** No cap, she looks like a troll. 

**Shachi:** AYOOOOO, what is that?

**Penguin:** Lmaooooo.

**Usopp:** Yikesssss. 

**Zoro:** Luffy looks like an idiot. 

**Luffy: :(**

**Sanji:** Hey, delete it right this instant! I won’t tolerate any slander to any of my girls!

**Ace:** She’s not your girl. 

**Sanji:** What business do you have with my Y/n-san?

**Ace:** Your Y/n? Not for long, blondie. ;)

**Sabo:** I think Y/n would go for Sanji before you, Ace. 

**Ace:** Whose side are you on?

**Sabo:** Y/n’s. 

**Killer:** Wow, I’ve never seen a picture of her as a child before. 

**Heat:** She’s quite… 

**Heat:** Cute.

**Killer:** True. 

**Ace:** Where do you guys live. We need to have a little talk. 

**Sanji:** HEY! You aren’t allowed to say that!

**Nami:** Can we stop fooling around for a second? It’s clear the picture didn’t work. 

**Y/n:** Guys… 

**Ace:** Yo!

 **Y/n:** No

 **Ace:** Ouch. 

**Luffy:** Y/n!!!! 

**Sabo:** <3

**Nami:** Finally. 

**Robin:** Oh, it would appear that she’s still alive. 

**Franky:** Robin, darling, don’t be SUPER~ freaky. 

**Y/n:** If you were going to post a bad picture of me, you could’ve picked this one. 

_ Y/n sent a picture.  _ This was far worse than the one Ace had sent in. 

**Shachi:** Self burnnn. Yikes. 

**Usopp:** Oh, THAT’S BAD. 

**Zoro:** Ha.

**Sanji:** Y/n-chann, why would you do this to yourself? ;-; 

**Killer:** Oh man, that one's pretty…

**Heat:** Bad..

**Nami:** Ignoring the picture, have you decided if you’re coming? 

**Y/n:** To what? 

You knew he had a party, but you didn’t want to admit it. Ace would probably call you lovesick or a stalker for knowing that he had one and your dignity wasn’t prepared to hear it. His relentless teasing was starting to drive you insane. 

**Nami:** To Ace’s homecoming party. Are you going?

**Y/n:** No. 

**Ace:** She’s definitely going. ;)

**Y/n:** No, I’m not. I’m busy. 

**Nami:** Please, Y/n, this is the first party we’ve had in a while. 

**Y/n:** As much as it pains me to deny you, I really can’t go.

**Nami:** Why not?

**Y/n:** because… I have an appointment with my therapist. 

**Nami:** You don’t even have a therapist. 

**Y/n:** … 

**Ace:** Congratulations, you played yourself. ;) Don’t be so butthurt, Peep, I know you’re going to come. 

**Nami:** Look, think about it, won’t you?

**Y/n:** … 

**Y/n:** I’ll think about it. 

**Ace:** That’s an indirect yes. 

**Y/n:** Nope, it's an indirect no. 

**Nami:** We’ll talk when I get home. 

**Y/n:** Don’t bet on it. ;)

_ Ace leaned back on his couch, smirking playfully into his phone. _

_ “She’s definitely going to come.”  _

_ Marco glanced over at his friend. _

_ “Who’s going to come?” _

_ “No one.” The ravenette tossed his head back and closed his eyes, a large smile on his face.  _

_ ‘I wonder what she’s going to wear…’  _

Sighing, you threw your phone onto your bed before leaning back in your chair to stare out your window. 

“As if I’d go to his stupid party.” 

Some part of you was whispering to you that you were lying to yourself. 

‘I’m definitely not going…’ 

Without knowing you had fallen asleep in your chair, you found yourself awoken by a face staring into your own. You scrambled back and yelped, your hands going up in a defensive position. 

“N-Nami! You scared the shit out of me!”

The ginger lifted her hands in surrender, laughing at your adorable reaction, “I wanted to see how you’d react if I woke you up.”

The girl moved over to your bed and sat down, tossing her shoes into the distance before massaging her sore feet. 

“Well, are you happy now?”

“Definitely.” 

You looked over to the mound of shopping bags settled near your desk. Plucking one of them from the ground and opening it, you were shocked to find a grand pile of clothing. 

“You went shopping again?”

Nami shrugged nonchalantly before undressing herself. She removed her earrings and necklace, placing them on her desk. She then shimmied out of her dress and flicked her hair away from her face. 

“Now, then.” 

She quickly changed into her nightgown and glanced back at you, her hand propped on her hip. 

“About that party.”

You guffawed at her comment, proceeding to bury your face into your hands. 

“There’s nothing to talk about, Nami. I’m not going and that’s final.”

“It’s not final until I say it is.” 

“Yes it is.”

“No, it isn’t.” 

“Yes.”

“No, it’s not. Don’t be obstinate, Y/n.” 

You gave her a muffled groan. 

“Give me one good reason why you can’t go.” 

“Because I’m busy.”

Your friend scoffed at your comment and moved to crouch in front of you. She held your face and squished your cheeks together so that you had no choice but to look at her. 

“Y/n, I know you well by now. If you’re not playing your games, then you're sleeping in your bed. Seriously, you’re exactly like Zoro sometimes.” She added as an afterthought. 

“I just don’t want to go, okay?”

“Why?”

‘Why?... Well, you didn’t really know why.’ 

You thought about it for a while. 

‘I’m probably being overdramatic… There’s really no reason why I shouldn’t go.’

The rest of the gang are going to be there, why wouldn’t you?

You sighed in exasperation, tired of the thoughts circulating in your head or the odd sensation that you felt in your heart. 

“That’s what I thought.” Nami smiled at your aloof expression before getting ready for bed.

You slipped under your covers and fell asleep, your mind abuzz with thoughts. 

  
  



	10. Encounter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if the first half of the chapter seems horrible. I didn't really feel motivated when I started on it. That said, I hope the other half makes up for it. :)

_ You dreamed of white lilies and grass glistening under the cold glare of the moon. Amongst the red spider lilies was a cotton-candied haired girl. She wore a silky dress that floated past her ankles, giving her the impression of an angel. With her back to the moon and the silvery rays reflecting from the water, she looked ethereal, almost out of this world.  _

_ “Lola?” Your voice sounded distant and cold.  _

_ The girl glanced back at you, her eyes shining with unshed tears.  _

_ “Y/n, I’m sorry…”  _

_ “What are you sorry about?”  _

_ You fell to the floor, disrupting the serene environment with your outburst. The red flowers swayed at your touch, moving with the current of the water beneath your feet.  _

_ The whole area was blotted out by a serene whiteness that blinded you. You couldn’t even tell where you were, much less why you were there.  _

_ “Lola…” You croaked, your voice suddenly failing you, “Don’t leave me alone. I can’t do this by myself.” _

_ The girl delicately avoided crushing the spider lilies as she sashayed her way to your side. With her hands extended towards you, she enveloped you in a freezing embrace. When she pulled back, she lifted your chin so that your gaze was fixed to hers.  _

_ “My, dear, Y/n,” She whispered, “You’ve always been alone.” _

_ A silent tear slipped down your cheek and into the water below, transforming it into a pool of blood and darkness.  _

You woke up in a cold sweat, your whole body shaking from the severity of the nightmare. As you began crying out for your lost friend, Nami immediately crouched down by you, silently stroking your back as your body convulsed from the tears. She began tending to you, placing a chilled towel over your overheated forehead to cool you down. 

She didn’t know what happened in your past, but she knew it had been traumatic, something no child should have been witness to. That said, there wasn’t anything she could do to help besides hold you close. So much pain had been dealt to so young of a child, that it had scarred her forever. It hurt that you wouldn’t open up about it either. No matter how much time passed between the two of you, you hadn’t trusted her enough to tell her what happened. Still, she couldn’t find it in herself to push you about it. You would come out and tell her about it when you felt you were finally ready. 

“It’ll be alright, Y/n.” She held you to her bosom as you cried out silently, your fingers digging into the sides of her clothing. 

When you finally recovered, you returned back to normal, as if nothing had ever happened. This was a common occurrence between the two of you. Nami would hold you tight while you trembled, crying out in her arms in this sort of desperation that she had never seen before. Then, you’d forget the whole incident, acting as if it had never happened. She knew it was your coping mechanism, but it wasn’t a healthy one. You were bottling all these emotions up, keeping them under heavy surveillance so they wouldn’t affect your everyday life, but she knew that one day they’d come back to bite you in ass. 

‘Oh, Y/n…’ A forced smile stretched Nami’s lips as she lightly stroked your hair. 

Your nightmares were a secret you dealt quietly. It wasn't something wanted to get out. It was a shame Nami had found out, but there wasn’t much you could do about it, especially since she was your roommate. That said, you specifically didn’t want Ace or Luffy to find out, because you weren’t quite sure how’d they deal with it. 

Your life as an abandoned child was far behind you, but the memories never quite stopped haunting your dreams. Sure, Mihawk had been there to comfort you, but there wasn't anything he could do to mend the scar that tore your heart apart. Some part of you was broken and he knew he couldn’t fix it. 

When Nami had tried to talk to you about it, you gave her the cold shoulder, unwilling to part your memories with your friend. It wasn’t that you didn’t want to, but you were afraid of what'd happen once they came out. 

You inhaled deeply before expelling the negative emotions clouding your heart. As soon as you’d returned to normal, you changed into a fresh outfit and prepared for the day, heading out with a bright heart and a clear conscious… or, a temporarily recovered heart and a slightly foggy conscious. 

_____________

On your way to your classes, you bumped into several people who'd been gossiping about the upcoming party. It didn’t bother you that they were, it just slightly rubbed you the wrong way. You wanted to avoid the topic as much as you could, but it seemed like the entire world was abuzz about it. 

Why was the world obsessed with one, idiotic ravenette?

You were already in a bad mood and the weather wasn't much better either.  The day had been stormy and full of rain. 

Why wasn't things going your way for once?

Once your classes had finished, you ran around to attend to a few things. After getting through your everyday errands, you spotted a tiny café hidden amongst the large university dorms. You decided that it was the perfect opportunity to destress. Perhaps a cup of hot coffee and a quiet environment was what you needed. 

You ran to the front door and shook out your coat before wrapping your fingers around the knob. 

Half a dozen customers glanced up as the door swung open, heralded by a blast of cold wind. Unlike the outside, the interior of the café was warm and cheery, with bright sputtering candles and colourful walls. 

The customers returned to their conversations as the door closed behind the new entrant and the cold rain was forgotten.

You ordered a grande crème before seating yourself in the corner of the cafe, finding it quite easy to relax in the warm atmosphere. With all that was going on in your life lately, you found it quite hard to find moments of peace like this. 

Once you received your coffee, you plucked your book from your satchel and cracked it open. It was a light read, or so you thought. Upon looking over the first few paragraphs, you realized it was a Shakespearian piece.

'Maybe a bit of literature will help me forget about last night.' You thought. 

Entranced in your book and by the warm cup of joe in your hand, you didn’t notice the jingling of the door, nor the hushed whispers around you. You glanced at the trio of women seated by you, a deep frown etched onto your face at the rude interruption.

“My, isn’t he just handsome?”

"Who is that?"

"Hey, it's that guy from abroad that I was telling you about!"

You lifted your book closer to your face, attempting to drown out the outside noises. 

“Is this seat taken?” The voice was unexpected. It was low, with an agreeable trace of huskiness mixed in with a pinch of playfulness. 

You internally groaned. Was the concept of peace and quiet unknown to people here? 

‘Just one day,’ You begged, ‘Can’t I have just one day of peace?’

A slender finger brought your book down from its place, allowing your intruder a clear view of your annoyed expression. 

Just as you were about to berate the man for his rude interruption, the words suddenly became jumbled in your mouth. 

You froze instantly, transfixed on the man’s appearance. 

‘Ace? What was he doing here?’ You wondered. 

The rain had tousled his dark black hair, giving it more a defined curl and his cheeks were a bright pink from the biting cold. 

You couldn’t help but admit that he looked quite… attractive like this. 

“Ace?” You asked breathlessly. “Are you following me?”

Ace pressed his hand to his chest, offended at your question. “What do you think I am, a hooligan?”

“I wouldn’t doubt it.” You scoffed. 

As you sipped at your coffee, you took your time to check out the ravenette in front of you. Unlike his usual, half-naked attire, he had opted for a baggy hoodie and a pair of grey sweatpants. His attire screamed ‘lazy’, but it looked effortlessly good on him. 

“Do you mind?” He gestured to the spot across from you. 

Instead of granting him the approval he expected, you dropped your bag onto the spot and shot him a thin-lipped smile. 

“Sorry, the spot’s taken.” You told him, not a trace of ‘regret’ in your voice. 

It was petty, you knew, but you didn't feel like getting your day ruined by him. 

Though you'd been lucky enough to find a place like this, you should've known that a stalker like Ace would be able to find it. Afterall, these days, he seemed to extremely adamant on hounding your ass. Why was that?

With a smirk to match your own, he dragged another seat to your table and placed it next to yours. You rewarded him with a withering glare. 

Undeterred by your attitude , he sat down next to you with a flourish, bringing about the eyes of every single customer in the cafe. 

You slid lower in your spot, hiding your face behind your book. What could he possibly want from you?

“You do know that there are other tables here, right?” You stated bluntly, gesturing to the array of available seats around your table. 

“Of course, I do.” He pulled his phone and began scrolling through it, completely oblivious to scathing glares you were sending his way. 

“Come on, Y/n, we haven’t seen each other in eight years, what’s with the hostility? You’re breaking my heart.”

Was he joking? Sure, eight years may have passed since you’d last seen each other, but it still didn’t change the fact that you were wary of him. He hadn’t accepted you into his group all those years ago, why would it be any different now?

Was he trying to get you to open and trust him just so that he could make fun of you? Was this all a prank? What was his motive for acting so friendly? Why the sudden change?

So many questions, but so little answers. Where were you to do?

“Say, aren’t you curious of what I’ve been doing all those years?

“Weren’t you abroad?” You asked. 

“So, you have been curious about me.” He propped his chin on your palm and gazed at you, a small smile on his lips. 

“I’m pretty sure that was common knowledge.” 

“How are you adjusting to the college life? It’s shockingly different than high school, isn’t it?” 

_ What was with the small talk?  _

“My freshman year was a little difficult, but after I met my friends, it became easier to adjust.” You murmured. 

“That’s good.” Ace’s lithe fingers played with a notch in the table, tracing the path it made to your end. When it came dangerously close to touching yours, you pulled away, wary of what he’d do. Honestly, he was even more unpredictable than before, which made things all the more complicated for you. 

The ravenette tucked his hands under the table and leaned back, lifting his leg to rest on his thigh. 

“Honestly, it’s a shame I wasn’t here to help you through your first year," He flicked at a stain on the vinyl table before continuing, "but what can you do about it, the past’s in the past.” He shrugged nonchalantly.

“Not like I needed your help in the first place…” You quietly added. 

Already tired of having to stay on your guard, you had decided to ask him to relocate, but just as you were about to tell him to move away, you noticed that all the seats were taken. 

Luck really wasn’t on your side. 

With a huff, you hunched back in your booth, grumbling obscenities low under your breath. You had no choice but to tolerate the man now that there were no more spots open. 

With how small the cafe was, it came to no surprise that you were squashed between the wall and a very warm, very large body. 

To say it wasn’t affecting you was a lie. Ace knew exactly what he was doing to you and if the smirk on his face said anything, it just told you that he was being smug about it. 

You thought about how Mihawk would react if he'd seen you in your current position. 

'He'd probably chop Ace's arms off and gift each of them to his brothers." You suppressed a shiver at the horrific thought. 

Though your father never discussed the possibility of a boyfriend, he'd been adamant on driving the boys in your life away, with the exception of Law, of course. Though, when he heard that you'd been fooling around with a pair of males older than you back in New York, he made sure you were aware of his disapproval. You imagined the reason he disliked Ace and Sabo was because he had no clue to what attained to a relationship... Which is probably why he thought you were 'dating' them. Of course, being as young as you were, you had no idea what a relationship between two individuals was like. 

Now that you were older, you knew exactly what 'dating' meant, but you weren't as knowledgeable as others, seeing as how you were still single. That said, you also didn't know much about sex, something that seemed to be common knowledge to most college students. Having never watched an explicit video, you weren't quite sure what to expect from it... Of course, you knew about the male and female anatomical system, which made you slightly more informed about intercourse than Luffy, who was quite the idiot when it came to anything other than food. 

As you grew older, your sister, Perona would introduce you to romance films and novels, something you'd never been quite as interested in, but since it was one of her favorite topics, you made sure to be attentive. You knew what flirting was, to an extent, but you'd never really experienced it. Since no one had ever bothered to woo you, you never found yourself in one of those situations you'd see on tv, not that you minded. You were quite content on watching your little shows and playing your games. As Luffy often liked to say, you were 'one of the boys'. Still, you'd have liked to have thought you had a feminine side. While you appreciated pants and hoodies more than skirts and crop-tops, you did see the appeal in them. 

You wondered how your friends would react to you in a skimpy dress...

You shook your head at the thought, delivering a curt laugh as you imagined it. 

A tingle ran up your arm when you felt Ace's body press even against yours. 

So immersed in your thoughts, you'd forgotten that he was even there.

Being so close to him, you could practically smell the cologne on his body. 

You unconsciously inched your nose a little nearer to his neck, inhaling the smokey scent that lingered on him. 

How had you not noticed this before? With how often you were squished against his well-built body, it was a wonder you never even realized he smelled like his. 

His scent was like an intermingling of charcoal flames and pine trees. 

‘I hate how good it smells…’ 

You glanced up at his face, only to find his mahogany eyes staring right back at you, his brows raised smugly. 

Judging by the way he was smirking, it came to no surprise that you had been caught. 

Normally, you wouldn’t have been embarrassed by as something small as this, but something about Ace seemed to turn you into an idiotic high school girl. 

Embarrassed wasn’t the word you would have used. You were absolutely mortified. Were you not capable of controlling your own body?

Was this... flirting?

You shook your head aggressively. You were sure that wasn't the situation with him... You would have liked to believe yourself, but some part of you was telling you that that was not the case. 

You didn't want to be overconfident and grow a large head, but you couldn't quite find a word for the way he was acting around you.

Was it just teasing or was it something more?

Unable to hold back the blush rising to your cheeks, you turned away, pinching yourself hard on the thigh. 

What was wrong with you? 

“Are you embarrassed, Peep?” Ace stated frankly.

Shocked by his blunt reply, you quickly turned your head to look at him out of the corner of your eye. 

“You are!” He gasped, pretending to be shocked.

“N-No, I’m not. Why would I be embarrassed?”

“Then, what’s that?” The ravenette took hold of your chin and gestured towards your discolored cheeks.

“It was cold outside, what do you expect?”

“But it’s warm here, is it not?”

Noticing your discomfort, Ace pulled back, opting to smirk at you instead. 

“Y/n, are you embarrassed to have me around?”

“What?”

“I asked,” He repeated, “Does my presence make you uncomfortable?” 

“N-No, why would it?” You glanced down at your clenched fists. “But I’m sure my presence makes you uncomfortable...” 

I mean, why wouldn't it? As kids, he was obvious about trying to split you up from the group, but these days, he seemed to be more subtle about it. Instead of yelling at you off the bat, he was resorting to teasing and... niceties. 

Though your last comment came out in a hushed whisper, the other individual seemed to have heard it. 

“What makes you think that?” 

The boy’s smile had fallen from his face, replaced by a neutral expression. 

‘What was with that reaction?’ It had been the first time since a while since you’d seen that expression on him and you knew it meant trouble. 

“Look, Ace, even as children, we’ve never been on the best of terms. We were always arguing and you always made your dislike for me obvious. Why would that change now?” You pushed down the seed of guilt rising in you, deciding to push forward and expel the thoughts that were plaguing you. “You don’t have to wear a facade and put up with me for Luffy’s or Sabo’s sake anymore.”

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence before Ace’s expression collapsed into one of irritability. His bangs fell into his eyes, obscuring your view of them. 

You couldn’t really tell what face he was making or what he was thinking, which terrified you. 

‘Could it have been that I said something I wasn’t supposed to?’ You shook your head, ‘No, I’m in the right for speaking out about what’s been bothering me.’

The air was so brittle it could snap, and if it didn’t, you knew that you might. 

Ace opened his mouth and calmly asked, “Isn’t that for me to decide?”

Something in you froze at his comment, but you made sure not to let your uncertainty show on your face. 

“You don’t have to pretend anymore, Ace.”

He let out a long, drawn out ‘hmm’, before shrugging, seemingly accepting your half-assed response. 

The ravenette then slowly looked up. The usual warmth in his eyes evaporated. His customary friendliness gone faster than summer rain on the tarmac.

“Who says I’m pretending.”

His eyes were narrowed, rigid, cold, hard.

“Let’s test that out, shall we?”

His chair moved back with a loud screech, alerting the rest of the customers to his presence. He cleared his throat before declaring, “I, Portgas D. Ace, proclaim that I want to be around Dracule Y/n! I repeat--” 

You grabbed onto his arms, attempting to pull him down. With a stern hiss, you seethed, “What the hell are you doing? Are you insane?”

‘Fuck, this was so embarrassing.’ 

You wanted to melt into the floor and disappear at once. Was this his method of killing you, because it was working. You felt as if your heart would stop at any given moment. 

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. You had to sit by and watch in horror as Ace caught the attention of every single person in the cafe, as well as a few curious bystanders from the outside. 

Ace pushed your hands away and cupped his mouth, restating his previous words. “I repeat, I want to be around Y/n! Nothing that any of you,” He pointed to the crowd, then to you, “--say or do can change my mind on that!”

You were baffled--no, that wasn’t the right term, you were straight up outraged. Why did you let him treat you this?

You yanked down the laughing ravenette. Expecting some sort of resistance from him, you used all the strength you could muster, but when he easily allowed you to pull him down, you found yourself pinned uncomfortably close to the wall. 

Ace’s firm body molded to your softer one, keeping you in place as he stared down at you. His fingers twitched by your face, as if he was holding himself back from doing something. 

As his hand moved lower, you couldn’t help but hold your breath, wondering what he was going to do next. 

His fingers brushed your jaw almost… lovingly; like that of a soft caress. A shiver ran through your body when he left a trail of warmth over your chilled skin. 

Having not expected him to be so close, you only barely managed to swallow down a gasp as your cheek rubbed up against his, the coarseness of his skin sending a tingle down your spine. 

What just happened?

“Do you believe me now, Peep Peep?”

If you weren’t so disoriented by what had happened, you would have definitely been embarrassed by the amount of eyes on you. 

You heard a cacophony of whispers erupting around you. 

“Isn’t that Ace?”

“What’s going on over there? Who’s that girl?”

“What did he mean by that?”

“Is that his girlfriend?”

“What just happened?”

Ace relaxed back in his chair and gave you a cheeky grin as if nothing had happened. You were baffled. 

_ ‘What the hell am I supposed to do now? Fuck, someone get me out of here...’ _

The eyes and the incessant questions from everyone was getting on your nerves. You absolutely hated being in the center of attention, something that seemed not to bother Ace at all. It just went to show how different you were from him. 

You chewed on your bottom lip, deep in thought. 

Was what he said the truth? Did he actually want to be on good terms with you?

You shook your head before jiggling your leg restlessly. 

No, it can’t be that easy. There must be some sort of ulterior motive behind his words… right?

You gripped at your hair and internally screamed. Why was he so difficult to read? What did he want from you?

Before you could over-analyze the situation, Ace reclined over your shoulder and stared at your book. His breath tingled over your nape, sending shivers of excitement down your spine. A cocoon of butterflies imploded in your stomach at the action. 

“W-What are you doing?” Your voice rose several octaves. 

“Wondering if your book was any good.” He lifted his phone. “I have nothing interesting to look at.”

He had obviously noticed the slight rosiness of your cheeks as he brushed up against you. He quite liked how you were acting right now. It was proof of how much he affected you. 

Ace leaned back in his chair and smirked as he brought his hands up to his head. 

“My book is absolute shit, if you’re into that stuff.” You babbled, your voice growing quieter every passing second.

“Oh, I’m very into it.” He had a gleam in his eye as he said that. 

You glanced away from his intense stare, unconsciously scooting a little farther from him. 

“Why are you being so… weird?” 

Was there something on your face? 

“Weird, me? Babe, I’m being attentive.” He smiled, “And, I thought I already told you the reason for my actions.”

“Right… You want to be around me or some bullshit like that.” You coughed into your sleeve. 

“Something like that.”

Pretending to look up at the clock, you immediately thought of a solution to your dilemma. Gasping dramatically, you looked towards the ravenette and claimed, “I just remembered, Luffy needed my help with a project of his.” You glanced towards the front doors. 

Following your line of sight, he raised his brows.

“Are you trying to get rid of me, Peep Peep?”

“Yes.” You stated bluntly. 

“Ouch. That was a little forward, was it not?” 

“No use beating around the bush.” You shrugged, offering the boy a sly grin. 

Ace leaned in, his eyes focusing on your face. After a moment of silence, he smiled, before giving your cheek a firm pinch. 

“If you insist.” He moved slightly to the side, granting you enough room to shimmy out.

“Right… Thanks.” You packed your utensils into your bag and slid out of your seat, making for the door. Glancing back at Ace, you noticed he donned a smug grin. 

‘Asshole,’ you thought. 

Too flustered to even notice the customer heading for you, you accidentally bumped into his shoulder, causing you to fall back into a firm chest. You gasped when you felt a pair of warm fingers grip onto your waist, preventing you from falling any farther. 

“Might want to watch your step next time, Peep.” Ace added cheekily. 

All you could do was grunt a quick thanks before your motor skills returned to normal. What was wrong with you? Had you lost all sense of sanity when you were around that freckled-faced buffoon?

You wiggled yourself out of his hold and beelined for the door, not wanting to stay with him for a second longer. 

‘I just want to forget about this whole incident.’ 

You were far too out of it to have even noticed a second pair of footsteps gaining on you. You only broke out of your trance when a hand gently squeezed your shoulder. When you realized it was Ace, the grimace on your face returned. 

“What? Are you going to make another declaration to me or something?”

Your tense posturing hadn’t gone unnoticed by the perceptive ravenette. 

“You forgot your book.” He walked up close, his body pressing into yours. Leaning in close, his fingers brushed the back of your hand. 

You held in your breath, not quite knowing what he was going to do next. 

Could he hear your thundering heartbeat?

“What the hell are you doing? Have you gone insane?”

Suddenly, his warmth was gone, replaced instantly by the cool rain. Your bag grew heavier as the male slipped your book into it. 

“Don’t you think you’re going insane, Peep? You’re acting quite strange. Maybe my words really got to you after all.” Ace smirked down at you, his dark eyes twinkling in delight at your squirming. 

“You--”

“Have a nice rest of your day.” He pulled a lollipop from his bag and popped it into his mouth, giving it a good swirl before winking back at you. With a smug grin and a small bow, he left, disappearing within the busy crowds. 

Even when you met with Drake later that day to plan out the first steps of your project, you couldn’t quite shake off the scent that clung to your body. Not only was Ace stuck to your mind like glue, but his imprint was also impressed onto your body. Your clothes and your hair smelled like him, especially after all of that ‘touchy’ feely shit he had done with you earlier. You were in a daze. 

‘Who gave him the confidence to start acting like that?’ 

He must have had some sort of ulterior motive for pulling such an embarrassing stunt like that.

It was impossible to escape him, especially now that you were in the same college as him. 

_______________

After class, you met up with Luffy at Sanji’s shared campus apartment with Zoro like you usually did most weekdays after school. Holding a large bag of take-out in your hand, you knocked on the front door, casually holding the food up to the peephole. As soon as it swung open, a pair of hands lurched at your shirt and dragged you inside. You immediately recognized those rubbery arms groping at the bag in your hand. 

“Luffy, wait--”

“Foods here!”

He tore through the translucent container and hauled the contents onto the nearest table, slamming it down in front of his oblivious friends. Sanji’s skin prickled at the loud ‘bang’ he heard, promptly turning back to beat the shit out of his friend for scaring him. 

“At least thank Y/n-chan for bringing the food here, you dimwit!” 

Luffy gave you a meek apology before diving into the mound of food. 

“Idiots.” Zoro scoffed. The mint-head merely looked up from where he was at, scoffing at the two bickering idiots. 

“Luffy, don’t be a nuisance.” 

Your heart leaped in your chest at the commanding voice right behind you.

‘Boy, he knew how to sneak up on someone…’ Your hand flew to your chest. 

“Oh, Torao.” 

You were shocked by the man standing right behind you. 

“Y/n-ya, I didn’t expect you to be here.”

“I could say the same about you.”

Law jutted his finger towards his unruly friend. 

“He dragged me here.” He clicked his tongue in annoyance. 

You gave him a knowing, ‘Ah’, before sliding into a seat across from Luffy. The boy grinned before digging into his food, a look of pure bliss etched on his face. 

“Going back to our topic before Y/n suddenly barged in,” Sanji lifted the blade he’d just been using to cut an onion with and pointed it towards Law, “What are you doing here?”

“I was wondering that as well, you never hang out with our group. What changed now?” You asked. 

“Nothing changed.” The ravenette corrected. “Mugiwara-ya dragged me here for no apparent reason. 

“It wasn’t for no reason!” Luffy lifted a chicken wing in the air and held it at Law. “I needed help on my upcoming exam!”

You nodded your head in admiration. Having expected that answer, it now made sense as to why he was here. 

“What test is it?” Zoro asked, looking up from where he was currently watching his show. You plopped down next to the mint-head, stealing a few kernels of his popcorn, before refocusing on the conversation. The boy’s annoyance was evident on his face, but he made no comment on your behavior. 

“Math…” The ravenette sighed in exasperation. 

“Hey, isn’t that the class that you ran away from?” Luffy nodded at your remark, at which Law scowled at. 

“And jumped out of the window?” Sanji implied, fixing his friend with a dark glare when he remembered what he’d done to your arm. 

“You ran away when your professor was giving out an exam, weren’t you, Luffy?” Torao added darkly. 

Luffy merely laughed at his friend before stealing Zoro’s portion of the food, earning himself a few knots on the head for that. 

“The teacher said I couldn’t eat during my test, so what was I to do--give up on my meal?”

“Yes, Luffy, you were supposed to do exactly that.” Law exhaled sharply, “Sometimes, I wonder if you’ll even graduate.”

“Shishishi, of course I will,” Luffy patted the raventte’s back aggressively, “Because you’re here to help me!” 

“I’m not here for your benefit, Mugiwara-ya.”

“You aren’t?”

You laughed at your friend’s obliviousness, only helping to add more lines of annoyance on Law’s face. 

Now that you thought about it, didn’t you have a class you were struggling with? As a student studying for his masters, you knew Law had already taken the class and, knowing him, he probably passed it with flying colors. 

That said, you began devising a plan in your head. 

“Say, in your sophomore year here, you wouldn’t have happened to take civics, would you?” You slipped off the couch and into the seat next to Law, giving him your best puppy eyes. Luffy followed suit, sensing the hidden intent behind your look. It wasn’t hard for him to tell how you were feeling, afterall, the two of you were practically on the same wavelength.

“Y/n-ya…” Law’s voice had a warning lilt to it. “What are you implying?”

“Let me rephrase it better.” You cleared your throat and slid closer to him. “I might or might not be failing a certain class. I might also have heard from somewhere that you took the same exact course.”

“Same here, same here! I’m also failing a class, Torao!” Luffy whined, pressing his body close to yours to replicate your exact expression. 

Law couldn’t exactly look away from the two of you, seeing as how you were directly in front of him, but he couldn’t give into your pleas either. 

“Torao, please? I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

The ravenette’s eyes shone at your words. 

“No.” He sighed, the lines on his forehead growing deeper with each passing second.

The three of you argued for the next fifteen minutes, attempting to change his mind, but to no avail. He was adamant in his decision and there was nothing you could do about it. 

You took a moment to think about it. What could you possibly offer him that he didn’t already have? Buy him something nice? No, he probably already had the money for it. Besides, you had no idea what he liked. Maybe you could spend some time with him? Nah, he was already tired of your presence. 

You released a heavy sigh, confusion etched into your expression. Maybe you should find help elsewhere…

Noticing your lack of response, Law glanced over, noticing your downtrodden appearance. As you were about to leave, the man took hold of your elbow and gently pulled you back to the table. 

You tweaked your eyebrows at him.

“Torao?” 

Luffy too looked up, shocked by the ravenette’s sudden change in demeanor. 

“What…” He trailed off, before starting again, “What do you propose?” His silver eyes glanced up, shining under the fluorescent lights overhead. 

“I’ll do whatever you want!” Luffy agreed with your proposal, nodding vigorously as Law’s eyes flitted between the two of you. 

‘What am I to do with the two of them…’ He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. 

“I’ll accept, on one condition.” 

The two of you excitedly gazed at him, your hands clasped together in impatience. 

“Name it!” Luffy chirped.

“On the condition that you’ll convince my friends and yours to get off my back about the party.”

After a moment or two to think about it, you chimed, “That seems reasonable.” 

Luffy grasped Law’s hand and gave it a firm shake. “You have a deal!”

“Luffy, I know I’m the one who’s going to have to talk to them, so don’t act as if it’s as simple as that.” You sighed. 

“Does that mean you’re refusing my help?”

“No!” You quickly shot back, to which Law huffed at. 

You grasped the ravenette’s shoulder and gave him a smoldering look, “Don’t worry, Torao! By the power vested in me, I’ll make sure you don’t have to attend the party!”

The thought of Ace’s horrific, public outburst had been pushed to the recesses of your mind once you spent the rest of the time at Zoro’s place. 

You relaxed for the remainder of the night wrapped up in Luffy’s suffocating hug while the two of you watched a horror movie. During the course of the film, you were occasionally distracted by Zoro and Sanji’s unpredictable brawls, but other than that, there wasn’t anything to disrupt your little bubble of contentment. Torao left halfway through the night, mumbling something about meeting up with Bepo, before slipping through the front door. 


	11. Mall Shenanigans

It was the blood lilies again… 

You opened your eyes with a jolt as you were brought out of your dreams. It was that nightmare once more…

Your body was covered in a thin sheet of sweat and the blankets were thrown haphazardly over your tangled legs. 

‘ _Fuck_ …’ 

You exhaled harshly, bending over your sheets to drop your face into your hands. 

“Was it that dream again?”

Nami sidled over to you, offering a cup of fresh joe she’d just bought.

“Yeah…” 

You accepted the beverage appreciatively, holding the simmering cup to your lips. The liquid was warm and soothing, something you hadn't known you needed. It tempered your shivers and the dark thoughts clouding your mind.

As soon as you drained the cup, you handed it back to Nami. 

“Y/n, I’m going to be blunt with you, that stuff you have all cramped in there--” She poked at your forehead, “It’s not healthy and you know it too.”

The ginger worded her next sentence carefully, so as not to offend you in any way, “That stuff is going to ruin you if you keep it all bottled up. Do you get where I’m coming from?”

She exhaled sharply before coming down to kneel by you, her hand grazing yours reassuringly.

“You know I’m not trying to be mean here, I’m just telling you what I--and everyone else--think you should do. You know I’m not the type of person to beat around the bush about this stuff.” 

“I know, Nami, I know,” You looked up at your friend, giving her a weak smile so as not to worry her as much. “But I’m not ready to talk about it yet.”

“Y/n--” Nami glanced over at you, her expression pinched in worry. You knew she wanted to say something, but the hard stare you sent her said otherwise. 

With a sigh, she gave up, resorting to fiddling around with her phone to distract herself from the problem in front of her. 

After you slid out of your bed, you raked a hand through your damp hair, pushing the loose strands away from your eyes. You really needed to take a shower. 

“I’m going to hop in the shower. If you need anything, give me a holler!” 

“Sure, I have a couple things I wanted to talk to you about later!”

You tossed her a questioning look. 

“About?”

“Oh, it’s not that serious, don’t worry. I just wanted to--” She clucked her tongue, as if she changed her mind halfway through, “Nevermind, just take your shower first!”

You ‘tsked’ at her comment but made no remark on it. As you made your way into the bathroom, you stripped off your clothes and stepped into the small shower, quickly turning the knobs to get the water to that perfect sweet spot. 

As soon as it was at that ideal temperature, you dipped your head under and basked in the steam that rose from the water. 

Taking a shower after one of your nightmares was one of the only things that took your mind off of them. You loved the warmness and the sense of security the water gave you. It was like a comforting hug around your vulnerable body, like a mother's touch. 

You fingers dipped into your hair, roughly scrubbing the shampoo into your scalp as you attempted to rub away the horrible dreams. 

When you finished, you dried off your body and shrugged on a fresh pair of clothes. It consisted of an oversized printed tee and jeans you’d found at the bottom of your dresser. It wasn’t the flashiest outfit you had, but it was far from the worst. 

“As for my hair…” You scrubbed a hand through it, watching as the strands fell over your eyes. “Eh, this should be fine. It’s not like I’m doing anything special anyways.” 

With one final touch up, you finally exited the bathroom, strolling back to your bed where Nami was waiting for you. 

“Oh, Y/n, that was quick.” She remarked. 

“Well, I’m not like a certain someone that needs to spend five hours doing my hair or… whatever.”

The ginger swatted at your arm. “I’ll pretend I never heard that. And, about that outfit, you’re going to need to change it,” She instructed. You glanced down at it your shirt and tugged at the excess end tucked into your jeans. 

“Something wrong with my outfit or something?”

“Yes, Y/n, you’re going to be cold if you go out in thirty degree weather with nothing but a pair of jeans and a short-sleeve shirt.” Nami sighed. 

“Who says I’m going out?” 

“We are--well, and Robin. We’re going to the mall to pick up some sexy outfits for the party!” 

“Woah woah woah,” You lifted your palms up, “I’m not buying an outfit for a party I’m not even going to--” Your friend pressed her finger to your mouth, abruptly silencing you before adding, “Look, leave the thinking for after the shopping. All I want to see right now is a credit card in one hand and a shopping bag in another, not your mouth giving me BS excuses, got it?”

You nodded curtly when she shot you a withering glare.

“Alright, so, how about you wear this--and this--” She threw you an oversized hoodie, a gray beanie, and a scarf to pair with your jeans. “And that should be enough to keep you warm!”

“Right… thanks.” 

You quickly changed into the clothes and waited for your friend as she prepped to head out for the day. As you were patiently idling by your desk, you suddenly got a text from Zoro. Peering down at your phone, you frowned in confusion when you saw the extremely vague message. 

**Marimo Head**

**Zoro:** I’m here.

_Delivered at 10:14 a.m._

**Y/n:** Uhh… wrong person, maybe?

**Zoro:** No, I’m in front of your dorm. 

**Y/n:** … Why are you here though?

**Zoro:** Nami asked me to come. She said it was an emergency. 

**Y/n:** Emergency? What emergency?

**Zoro:** Not sure, you’ll have to ask her about it. 

You went to your door and opened it, only to be greeted by empty air. Glancing back down at your phone, you sent him a quick text 

**Y/n:** Uhh, Zoro, are you sure you’re at the right dorm?

**Y/n:** Wait, please don’t tell me you came here alone. Didn’t Sanji--or someone else come with you?

**Zoro:** No, I didn’t need that ero-cooks help.

**Y/n:** LMAO. So… you’re basically lost. 

**Zoro:** No… 

**Y/n:** If you say so.

_Delivered at 10: 19 a.m._

After a moment or so, you received another text. 

**Zoro:** … 

**Zoro:** I don’t know where I am. 

_Delivered at 10:25 a.m._

**Y/n:** Deadass?

**Y/n:** Just tell me the basic details of your surroundings. Are there any signs or distinct markers that tell you where you are?

**Zoro:** There’s a door in front of me and it’s black. 

**Y/n:** A black door? None of the dorm doors are black. Are you in a room? Can you look around for a sec. 

**Zoro:** Yeah, I’m in a room. It’s dark and--oh wait, there are swords here… 

**Zoro:** Hold up, these look exactly like my swords. Wait, what the fuck. Why does someone have my swords in their room?

**Y/n:** ZORO?!?!? Did you break into someone's room? Ayo???

_Deliver at 10:30 a.m._

**Y/n:** Wait… 

_Deliver at 10:35 a.m._

**Y/n:** … 

**Y/n:** LMAO. Zoro, did you get lost in your own room???

**Y/n:** DON’T PLAY WITH ME. THAT SHIT IS FUNNY.

**Y/n:** Did you even get out of your own apartment? 

**Zoro:** … 

**Zoro:** Shut up. Just tell me how to get to your dorm. 

**Y/n:** Alright, alright. I’ll send you my address. All you need to do is plug it into your GPS. 

**Y/n:** Oh, and don’t forget to bring Robin with you. I’m scared you’ll accidentally book a flight to Africa or something.

When Robin arrived at your dorm with Zoro in tow, it came to no surprise that he’d accidentally made his way to the airport. Apparently, he’d been loitering near the counter, asking about directions to your dorm. You laughed your ass off while Nami berated your directionally-challenged friend.

The three of you walked down to the shared parking lot where you found Zoro’s car parked dangerously close to another vehicle. Seeing as how often he got lost, you found yourself wondering why he even had one in the first place. 

You slid into the back with Robin as Zoro and Nami hopped in the front. 

“Hey, who’s going to be driving?” You leaned forward, sticking your head between the seats. 

Nami glanced warily at the mind-head before giving you an uncertain shrug. “Last time I drove a car, I crashed it into a pole and had my license suspended.”

“Wha--Oh shit, really? I heard from Luffy that you killed three people!”

Nami gave you a nice solid fist to the head for that. 

“Don’t believe everything that nim-wit says!” 

You rubbed at your sore spot and managed to wheeze out a weak, “Sorry…” 

“What about you, Robin?” Nami redirected her attention to the quiet ravenette. 

The blue-eyed woman cocked her head to the side and silently peered at her friend. “I never got my driver's license.” She stated matter-of-factly. 

“Wait, what?” The three of you asked simultaneously. 

“What’s the story behind that one?” You questioned. The ravenette merely shrugged at your inquiry, as if it’d been the dumbest question.

“Would you like to know?” You shivered at her tone. 

“No, we don’t have the time for that--wait, Zoro, what are you doing?” The mint-head put the car into reverse and pressed on the gas pedal. 

“What, I’m driving us there.” The male glanced over to the ginger, his brow tweaked in annoyance. 

“No the hell you aren’t!” Nami snapped. “You’re going to get us in trouble, or worse, killed! Give me that--” She leaned over and pulled the emergency brake up, preventing the car from moving any further. “Crazy bastard…” She murmured under her breath.

Honestly, you didn’t see the problem here. As long as one of you got the group there, was there really much to complain about? Sure, Zoro had a bit of trouble when it came to directions, but his driving was fine… wasn’t it?

You took a moment to let that thought sink in.

Actually, now that you thought about it, Sanji had never let Zoro drive any of the girls. Sure, he allowed the marimo-head to pick up the boys from time to time, but he barred you from ever going with him when you asked. Why? Well, you probably already knew the answer to that. 

You sucked in your teeth at the thought. Was death imminent?

As the four of you quarreled, you finally came to the decision that you’d let Zoro drive. Why? Well, Nami couldn’t, as her licence had been revoked. Robin, on the other hand, had never learned to drive. You didn’t know why, but you didn’t question it. That girl was the definition of mysterious.

You, well, that was another story. Though you had your license, you’d been banned from driving when you accidentally drove over Luffy a couple months back. 

It was purely an accident, one you didn’t even think you were capable of making. Thankfully, your friend seemed to be practically made of rubber, so he came out of the incident with nary a scratch. 

The three women in the car sighed in exhaustion. 

“If we die, I want to die beautifully.” Robin stated. 

“Let’s not come to that conclusion so quickly.” Nami shot the ravenette a glare. 

“So, where are we going?” The mint-head interrupted Nami’s bickering with the stone-faced girl. 

“Weren’t you listening to our conversation, you numb-knuckle? Sanji said he couldn’t take us because he was busy visiting the Baratie with Zeff. Luffy and the others said they were also tied up, so Zoro was the only one left."

“Yikes, left to the wolves.” You patted the male’s shoulder, offering him your condolences. He pushed your back with a finger, smirking when you fell back into your seat with a 'thud'. To pay him back for that, you kicked the back of his spot, earning yourself a one eyed glare, a look you reciprocated with a wide smile. He scoffed in exasperation and redirected his attention to the fuming ginger. 

The two bickered for a while as you started a conversation with Robin, discussing your most recent classes and the latest gossip. When the two up front grew quiet, yoi looked over, grinning when you saw Nami's victorious smile. She'd won that one.

‘She probably bribed him with sake.’ You tittered at the thought, a knowing smile lifting the ends of your lips. 

Zoro began driving at Nami’s instruction, gripping the wheel tightly as she shouted the directions in his ear. 

“Okay, we’re going to take a left here--Zoro, I said a fucking left, not a right!” The man swerved dangerously close to another vehicle, earning himself a loud honk and a knot to the head. 

“Fucking shi--Woman, you could have said that earlier!” 

“I told you that five minutes ago!”

You popped your head between the seats again, pointing at the blinking signal ahead, stating, “Zoro, that’s the wrong way again.”

The mint-head rotated the wheel and took a U-turn on an area where it wasn’t allowed. 

“And that was illegal.” You laughed. 

“Oh my--” Robin started, her hand lifting to her mouth, “I believe we’re going to die.” 

“Don’t say that, Robin. It’s creepy. And you--” Nami gave you a harsh thud on the head, “Don’t take it so easy! We’re in a life or death situation here!” The ginger shot the two idiots a threatening look. “I swear, you’re so much like Luffy sometimes, Y/n.” 

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” You beamed at her. 

“It really isn't.” 

When you got to the mall, Zoro managed to park the car, albeit horribly, and the four of you entered the building with a grumbling mint-head in tow. The three of you, excluding Zoro, were practically shaking from the horrifying experience. Horrifying probably wasn’t the best word though. You were traumatized. 

After being chased by several cops and barely evading them, the four of you managed to hide in an alley as they whizzed by, alarms blaring. Zoro then sped to the mall, only barely avoiding a dead end and driving over a bridge after Nami had taken the wheel from him. At that point, even Nami was a better option. 

The three of you, Robin especially, were fixing Zoro with death glares, not that he seemed to care in the least.

Once you’d had the time to recover, you began wandering around the vast building, ‘oohing’ and ‘aahing’ at the various restaurant stands until Nami dragged you out of the food complex. 

The group moved from shop to shop, occasionally checking out the clothes on display. When Nami deemed it too expensive, she moved onto the next one, claiming that she’d find a better one. 

The four of you finally stopped at a designer store, one you’d found Robin staring intently at.

It would appear that her taste wasn’t all that different from your money-loving ginger. 

Looking over at her, you asked, “Something caught your eye?” 

The ravenette walked over to a rack of clothing and pulled out a form-fitting halter. She ran her fingers through the satiny materials before glancing over at you. 

“What do you think?”

You held your chin and squinted your eyes, appraising the dress. “I think you’d look really beautiful in it.”

“You think?” Robin gave you a thankful smiling before checking over the dress again, inspecting the size and price. 

“I’ll go change into it real quick. Let me know what you think.”

You gave her a thumbs up as she ambled over to the stalls. Robin emerged from the changing room minutes later, gathering the attention of those around her. She was already beautiful enough in her normal clothes, but when she slipped into something flashy, she’d garner the eyes of everyone around her. 

“Wow.” Both you and Nami stared at her, a twinkle in either of your eyes. 

“You look absolutely stunning!”

Busy fussing over the ravenette’s appearance, you hadn't even noticed your ginger friend change into a gown and twirl in front of you. Glancing up, you were surprised at your breathlessness. Nami was absolutely mind-boggling. She wore a maroon dress made of a soft, satiny fabric that rode up to her thigh. There was a slit from the side of her leg that stopped right under breast. Much like the bottom half of the outfit, the top was just as revealing, if not more. Her cleavage was there for all to see, leaving nothing to the imagination. Honestly, you shouldn't have been surprised, this was Nami we were talking about, afterall. When didn’t she dress sexy? 

“Hot, isn’t it?” Your friend slid her hands over her curvaceous body, making sure to give a passing boy a wink as he checked her out. 

“Sure.” You shrugged, pretending as if her outfit didn't shock you. 

Your friend sashayed to your side and gave your cheek a hard pinch. “Where are my compliments, Y/n, you practically smothered Robin with them.”

You nonchalantly whistled, acting as if you didn’t hear her words. 

“Because she almost never wears outfits like that,” You whined, protecting your throbbing cheek from her iron-like fingers. “Besides, I compliment you enough as is.”

“And it’s still not enough, but that aside, I think we’ve decided on our outfits. How about you, Y/n? Oh, and you too, Zoro!” She snapped her fingers at the sleeping companion. He blinked tiredly before yawning, his shoulders shaking from the effort. 

“What do you need?” He asked, a tinge of boredom slipping into his voice. 

“You need to pick out an outfit for the party too. I can’t have my friends attending in rags!”

Zoro picked at a piece of debris in his nails, seemingly unbothered by the ginger's plight. 

“I’ll just wear whatever. It’s not a big deal.” 

Nami crossed her arms and leered over the boy, pressing her finger into his nose. 

“Listen here, I’m not exactly giving you a choice on the matter. You understand?”

“No.”

You held your friend from assaulting Zoro, silently pleading to him that he’d cooperate with the fuming ginger. 

“Nami, it’s not a big deal, really. If push comes to shove, he can borrow something from Sanji, right? I have no doubt that he has something good hidden in his closet, so let’s not make a big deal out of it.” 

The ginger backed off, but not before giving the male a scathing scowl. 

“Fine… I’m going to go check out a couple more dresses. And you,” She poked at your forehead lightly, “Go find something to wear.”

“But I’m not going to the party--” You snapped your jaw shut at her dark look, immediately standing at attention. 

“Now, go.”

“Yes, ma’am.” 

As Nami wandered off to try on several more outfits, Robin sidled up to you, holding up a two-piece she thought that’d fit you. 

“I think you’d look very fetching in this.” She acclaimed, pressing the soft garment to your body. 

“That’s alright, Robin, I’m not really looking to get anything here… other than food, of course.” You pushed the fabric away before stepping back to sit next to the snoozing Zoro. 

“Still, it wouldn’t do for you to go back to Nami empty handed, would it?” Robin gave you a small smile, one you returned, albeit hesitantly. 

“That sounds like a threat…” There was a prolonged moment of silence before you returned to your merry disposition. 

“My, I hope I didn’t come off as threatening.”

“Don’t worry, you always say scary things like that.”

With that, you absentmindedly roamed the room, flicking a discarded sock or sifting through a mound of clothes out of boredom. 

How long did it take Nami to find what she wanted?

As soon as you thought that, she sprung out of the dressing room, baring her body for all to see. A couple of customers lifted their heads to her, their eyes bulging as they took in her scandalous outfit. 

There was barely anything covering her… private parts. 

You hacked out the wad of spit that caught in your throat, coughing in the corner like a mad man. Though you earned a few odd stares, most of the attention was on your smoking hot friend. 

“I think I’m going to get this one!”

“I-If--” You cleared your throat, “If you like it.”

“As it so happens, I do!”

Robin dragged Nami to the cashier’s to discuss something about her outfit. As soon as they purchased them, your ginger friend dumped the bags into Zoro’s arms before dragging the rest of you around the mall, picking out the odd piece of jewelry or eyeshadow pallet to match with their dresses. 

As soon as she was satisfied with her purchases, she allowed you to lead the group to the food complex. 

The four of you entered the domain and power-walked towards the various stands. 

“Priorities, people, priorities,” You determinately clapped your hands, “I feel like eating some tacos!”

“Alcohol, we need alcohol,” Zoro reminded, shifting the shopping bags onto another arm. You offered to hold half of them for him, but the glare he sent you seemed to say otherwise. With a shrug and a sigh, you gave up. 

“Don’t forget to get the rest of the gang what they want.” Robin suggested, pointing to the variety of different cuisines. 

“Right, we also can’t forget that Luffy eats a larger portion than the rest of us.” Nami snapped her fingers. “Get Luffy three servings of BBQ… as for the rest, just get whatever you think they’ll like.”

Once you received your orders, the four of you sat down at an available table and dove in, hounding on the food as soon as you opened the containers. 

‘That hit the spot…’ 


	12. Mall Shenanigans Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize in advance for the sub-par chapter. I hope to make it up on the upcoming ones.

You stared at a random groove on your table as you munched on a chip, absentmindedly scratching away at the hole. Once you'd finished your meal and realized you were still hungry, you resorted to stealing bits of Zoro’s.

Though he kicked your leg under the table and shot you a warning look, you could tell that he wasn't all that bothered by it, seeing as that it was a common occurrence between the two of you. 

Nami had been conversing with the others about school and other topics before suddenly switching to relationships. You didn’t know what prompted her to bring it up, but you weren’t complaining. This matter was rarely, if ever, boring. 

That certainly got your attention. 

“Hey,” Nami shoved at Zoro, alerting him to her presence.

“What?” He grumbled. 

“What’s your type?”

"Well, that came out of the blue. She certainly knows how to cut straight to the point...," You mumbled to yourself.

“My type? My type of what?”

“The type of person you’re interested in? You know, like tall or short, sexy or reserved.”

Zoro rolled his eyes. “Do you honestly think that'd I'd be thinking about that shit?”

Nami crossed her arms and glared at him, “Just answer the question, mosshead.” 

A vein popped on his head. “Fuck this…" With a sigh, he answered, "I suppose, if I had to answer--I guess my type would be sharp… and dangerous.”

Nami huffed at his response. “Could you be alluding to your swords, Zoro?”

Instead of replying, he closed his eyes and leaned back, blatantly ignoring her question.

His posture screamed, ‘Don’t talk to me or I’ll kill you’. 

You shrugged at your fuming friend. 

“Oh, whatever. It was my fault for asking him in the first place.” 

With a sigh, she redirected her attention from the moss-head to the quiet ravenette across from you. 

“Instead of talking about Zoro, why don't we talk about you? I’ve been curious,” Nami twirled her fork in the air, pointing it straight at Robin, “How did someone like Franky get with someone like you?” 

Robin swallowed her food before answering, “Oh, it’s nothing special. We were paired for an assignment in a class during our… freshman year, I believe? After a year or so of being friends, he asked me out on a date... and the rest is history.”

“Really now? I can’t see Franky as the romantic type, somehow.” 

“On the contrary, he’s actually quite sweet.” Robin scraped a bit of guacamole onto her chip and popped it into her mouth. 

“How so?”

“My, aren’t you curious.” The ravenette smiled innocently at the ginger, earning herself a pout from the other. 

“I can’t help it,” She sulked, “Since you’re the only one in our group in a relationship, you’re the only one I can talk to about it.” 

Zoro rolled his eyes and pulled his headpiece over his face, probably to take a quick nap so as to drown out the 'boring' topic. 

“But why would you want to talk about that stuff. Isn’t it boring?” You leaned over the table, swiping a chip from Robin’s pile. Nami shot a judgmental look your way.

“Perhaps it's boring because you’ve never been in a relationship, little miss boring.” Your nose scrunched when she gave it a gentle flick. 

“With the right person, that opinion of yours might change,” Robin commented.

“What she said.” Nami smiled back at the ravenette. 

You thought hard about it for a moment.

A relationship? Did you really want to be in one? Better yet, who’d you even date? Luffy? 

You gave them a quiet ‘hmm’, but continued to listen in on their conversation. 

“That aside, how’s Franky treating you? Good, I hope?”

“It’s been wonderful, but there’s not much I can say on it. We aren’t that different from other couples.”

Nami blew a raspberry before glancing away. 

“Don’t be like that, Robin, we hardly ever talk and when we do, you’re always evasive. Pay more attention to me~.”

“Not evasive, Nami-san, just vague.”

“How’s that any better?” She poked at her friend’s shoulder. 

“It really isn’t as interesting as you think it is.” Robin grasped the ginger’s hand and looked into her eyes. “That aside, I'm more curious about your fascination in my relationship.” The ravenette leaned in, “Could it be that you’re interested in my relationship because you’re currently seeing someone?”

Nami clutched her face as it transformed into several shades of pink. 

“H-How’d you know?”

Similarly to Zoro, you rolled your eyes and looked away.

Could she be any more obvious?

“I’m perceptive.” The ravenette smiled. 

“You’re dating someone?” You asked. That certainly piqued your interest. 

“Well, it’s not official yet, but there’s this man in my geography class and he’s fairly wealthy--”

You flicked a crumb off the table when you lost interest in the topic again, “So, you’re just interested in him because of your gold-digging tendencies. I should have expected that…”

Nami gave your head a harsh knock before clearing her throat. “I’ll have you know that he’s different.”

“I would hope so.” Robin laughed behind her hand.

“That’s what you said about all of them.” The ginger raised her fist at you in warning.

“Since you’re so adamant on judging my relationships, how about we talk about yours? Since you haven’t dated someone… let’s see,” The ginger puckered her lips in thought before giving you an ‘aha!’, “Let’s start with this. What’s your relationship with Trafalgar?” 

“Trafalgar? Oh, you mean Torao.” 

“Sure.”

“I don’t think there’s much I can say about it, to be honest. Sure, we grew up together, but we were never the closest. I mainly hung out with Sabo, Ace, and Luffy. Torao preferred to keep to himself. Not much to say on that.”

“Oh come on, Y/n. There’s no way nothing could have happened! You were raised around three hot men, for crying outloud!”

‘Three… hot… men?’ You pondered, “Them?’

"What does that have to do with anything?" You questioned. 

"Everything, Y/n, everything. There's no way there wasn't drama with those three." Nami leaned in, "How about this... Tell me about Law. What's he like?"

You scratched at your head as you thought on it.

"Umm... I mean, yeah, Torao’s objectively handsome, but he has the personality of a brick. That said, I'm not sure what else to say about him besides his dislike for bread and his weird obsession with mushroom hats?"

“I’m sure there’s more to him than meets the eye." She gave you a suspicious smile before continuing, "Putting Law aside, I'm more curious about the other boys in your life. What's your take on that blondie, Sabo, or Ace?”

“Sabo has a girlfriend, Nami.” Robin commented. 

“But Ace doesn’t.” She wiggled her brows at you, sharing a knowing look with her ravnette friend. You pouted at the two of them. 

“He’ll get one in no time at all. Knowing him, he probably already has one.”

“Somehow, I doubt that.” The ginger lifted her drink to her lips, taking a long sip as she inspected your serious expression. 

“But, what do you think about him?”

You cocked your head to the side in confusion. “What do I think about what?”

“About that boy--Ace.” 

“Yikes. Where to start.” You counted down your fingers as you began picking out his flaws. “He’s not easy on the eyes, he’s terribly rude and inconsiderate, and he loves to embarrass me. I believe that about sums him up.” You pinched your lips and averted your gaze, mumbling, “I’ve got 99 problems and he’s every single one.” 

“Is that all?”

“My, that sounds more like a relationship than a rivalry.” Robin pointed out. 

“Don't even get me started on that.” You raised your fist to the ravenette. Before you got too heated though, you sat down and took a quick swig of your water. 

You scoffed at her indifference to your clear dislike for the freckled boy. What would she know? She never dealt with his brutality first hand. 

“What do you mean, is that all? I absolutely despise him! He--” You snorted, looking away at your grinning friend. 

‘He always wanted to separate me from the group.’ 

You thought back to some of the earliest memories you had with him… 

_Ace glared down at you from where he was perched, a twisted frown on his face._

_You sniffled loudly, rubbing at the dribbling snot under your nose with the back of your sleeve._

_“Don’t be such a baby, you’re just embarrassing yourself.” Ace snapped, his brows riding down over his eyes._

_“Hey, cut it out.” Sabo swatted at his brother's arm before climbing down to crouch by your side._

_Luffy was already right next to you, awkwardly patting your back as your sobs came out in short hiccups._

_“Ace, why are you being like this? She hasn’t done anything to deserve your hate.”_

_“She’s annoying and all she ever does is follow us around. It’s irritating, don’t you get it? All the clinging and stalking is getting on my nerves.”_

_You wiped the tears from your eyes and quietly watched the scene ahead, keeping quiet so as not to offend the boy even more._

_“Luffy was the same way in the beginning--hell, so was I. What makes us any different from her?”_

_“You guys are an exception." The ravenette’s dark eyes narrowed on you._

_“And she’s not? Just--,” Sabo sighed, “Give her a chance.”_

_Ace grew quiet after that, looking away with a scoff at his brother’s words. After a moment of silence, he turned around once again, pointing the butt end of his pole your way._

_“Give me one good reason why I should let you into our group and I’ll… think about it.”_

_You huddled even closer to your lanky friend, curling into yourself as you whispered, “Because being alone is more painful than getting hurt.”_

_The ravenette’s eyes widened at your words, but he made no comment on it. With a huff, he turned away and began his descent down the hill._

_You stared at his back, watching as he grew farther and farther away._

‘I was always staring at his back, for some reason. I always followed him, even if he yelled at me for it.’ You thought. 

Noticing your faraway look, Nami lightly tapped at your shoulder, tearing you away from your daze. 

“Look, Y/n, I don’t know what happened with him that warranted such a… strong reaction from you, but,” She slid her hand over yours, “I think he’s changed. I’m not telling you that you need to change your mind about him, but I’m saying that you should give him another chance.”

“Chance? Him?” You scoffed, “What if I do--What if I give him another chance and he treats me the same way? What then?”

“There’s always a risk with these things, but look at it this way--has he done anything recently to give you a reason to hate him? From my perspective, it looks like he wants to be closer to you, or at the very least, make amends with you.”

You sighed and looked down at your open palms. 

What if what she was saying was true? What were you going to do then? Could you really open up to Ace and… become friends with him? Was that a possibility with a person like him? Still, there was some truth to her words. He’d been treating you with nothing but kindness. Sure, he still teased you from time to time, but his banter seemed more friendly than biting.

You rubbed a hand through your face, scrubbing away at the sudden exhaustion that seemed to seep into your body. 

“I’ll…” You sighed, “I’ll think about it.” 

Nami clapped her hands together and cheered. “I’m glad!" She then directed her attention to Zoro, "Now that that’s over with, how about we get back to the car. I don’t think that we’re in any condition to be walking around with all this luggage." 

Speaking of friends… You suddenly remembered that you needed to convince Nami to omit Law from the list of friends attending the party. 

“Wait!” You held your friend back from leaving, earning yourself a confused look from her. 

“What? Is there something else you want to talk about?”

“Actually, yes, there's something I forgot to mention.” You pinched your lips and thought for a while on how you were going to phrase this. “Is there any way we can get Torao out of the party?"

“Wait, wait, wait, what? I thought he said that he’d think about it.”

“About that…” You scratched at the back of your neck, “He made me promise that I'd get him out of the party if he tutored me.”

Your friend gave you a quick 'oh'. She seemed to think about it for a second before saying, “Oh, is that all? In that case, it’s fine.”

She seemed to have a suspicious glint in her eyes as she said that. 

“Wait, just like that? It’s that easy?” You questioned, skeptical of her simple answer. 

“You naughty dog, of course it is! I hope this little ‘tutoring’ session turns out to be beneficial for the both of you.”

“Uhhh, Nami, I’m in need of tutoring for my civics, not for… whatever other reasons that you seem to be thinking about. What could I have possibly said to send your mind down that route?”

“Honestly, Y/n, who am I to stand in the way of those things.”

"Those... things? What the hell are you talking about?"

"Sometimes, you're so obtuse. If law not attending the party is the consequence to getting him to spend some... time with you, then I'm not complaining."

"That's really freaking suspicious and so very random. What do you mean by that?" You questioned. 

"I mean, if you're so adamant on avoiding Ace, then I might as well try to get you to interact with other guys."

"Wait, Nami, I'm getting mentored by him, not railed--and Ace has absolutely nothing to do with this conversation." You shook your head, "That aside, what does him tutoring me have anything to do with me being a 'naughty dog'." You raised your fingers into mock quotation marks as you asked her. 

She pinched your nose and leaned in, “Think about it for a second, you obtuse idiot, why would Trafalgar agree to tutor you when he’s rejected everyone else who’s asked him?”

“Because there was something in it for him?”

“So naive.” Robin patted at your cheek affectionately before waking your sleeping companion. Zoro awakened with a jolt, his eye opening slowly to examine his surroundings. 

"Even if there's something in it for him, which is unlikely, given that he has all he needs, why would he agree to someone now? And why you of all people? Humor me for a minute. Why doesn't he call me directly and tell me that he's not attending the party?"

"Isn't it 'cuz I'm closer to you and the chances of me convincing you are far higher than his."

Nami shook her head and gave up with a sigh. “I suppose you’ll find out in time.”

She shoved the shoppings bags into Zoro’s arms before sashaying off, her arm linked around Robin’s as she dragged her away. You picked up the other half of the clothes, tossing the mint-head a look of apology as he begrudgingly followed the other two. 

What could she possibly mean by that? Was Torao tutoring you for some other reason? Was it similar to Ace's situation? Was it all just an excuse to get closer to you?

You scratched at your head in confusion. 

But, that didn't make sense. Why would Torao want to get closer to you? He never seemed to be interested in you in first place. Why the sudden change?

Instead of burning through your energy mulling over it, you decided to leave it for later. Right now, you had to deal with the stress of having to drive back home with Zoro. That alone was enough to send you into a state of exhaustion. 

As the four of you were driving back to the dormitories, you suddenly received a call from an unknown number. Fishing out your phone, you pressed the accept button and listened closely. You were immediately met by a loud, familiar shriek. 

“Y/n!”

“Luffy?” You asked, wincing at the piercing scream, but not in the least bit concerned at his breathless tone. 

Nami and Robin, on the other hand, were far more worried about it. Probably because they couldn’t listen in on the conversation while they were monitoring Zoro’s driving. 

“Oh, I thought it might be you! I couldn’t remember your phone number, but I was lucky enough to have both Ace and Torao here to give it to me!”

“Uhh--wait--hold up, start from the top again. Why exactly are Ace and Torao in the same area and what’s going on? Why are you calling me from an unknown phone and why do you need my number?”

“Well, we were told to call someone we were close to and the first person I thought of was you!”

“I don’t understand. Why would you need to call someone you trust? Wouldn’t Sabo be the first person you think of--or Shanks?”

“Well, Sabo is also here and no one here can remember Shank’s number…” 

Nami yanked your phone from you and asked, “Wait, why the hell is Sabo, Ace, and Torao with you? What the hell is going on, Luffy?”

The ginger snapped at Zoro when he tried to look back to listen in on the conversation. Robin lightly patted the mint-head’s shoulders in empathy. He seemed to always get the short end of the stick with Nami. 

You heard a yell from the other end of the call and a deep, “Is that Y/n? What is she saying?”

Luffy yelled back, “Nothing yet! Hold on! Hey, Y/n--or Nami, can you pick us up? We’re currently at--Oi, Torao, where are we?” The phone crackled as a hand was pressed over the receiver. After a moment of muffled yelling and a drawn out sigh, you heard Luffy bluntly asked, “Can you bail us out? We got arrested.”

You threw your head back and laughed as Nami gave the phone an incredulous look.

“You what?! Explain to me exactly what happened! Zoro, I need you to get us to the nearest precinct! Robin, can you pull up the directions? And you--” Nami pulled at your ear, “This isn’t a laughing matter!” 

Robin fussed over the directions with Zoro as you howled in laughter in the backseat, earning yourself more than a few glares from your fellow companions. You couldn’t help it. Nothing ever seemed to go as planned, especially with Luffy around. You were grinning in glee as you thought of the tense atmosphere between Ace, Torao, and Sabo. Boy, you felt bad for the blonde, because those two ravenette's _never_ got along. 

Although Zoro took several illegal turns and sped through more red-lights than you could count, you were sure you were on the right track to the nearest station, that is, until Zoro fucked up. 

You had been idly listening to Nami's rant with Luffy when you saw a pole rapidly approaching. 

"Uhh, Zoro, I don't think--," but before you could even finish, you were jostled around in the back, yanking onto the seat-belt for dear life. 

"What the hell--" Nami began. 

One moment the road was there, wide, open and safe. Things seemed to be going as planned… and then your idiot friend crashed into a traffic light.

Honestly, you were thankful you were in the middle of a highway with no other cars around, else you might have been afraid that your directionally challenged friend might have killed someone. 

"Oh my fucking--" Nami grabbed Zoro's throat in a death-grip, attempting to strangle the life out of him. 

After their little fight, you decided to leave the steaming vechile. 

With a grimace, the four of your exited the car, staring at it in utter confusion.

What were you going to do now?

As Nami assaulted the mint-head, both you and Robin attempted to think of several solutions to the problem. Looking over the affected area, it didn’t seem like it was in a dire condition. Sure, there were minor signs of a scuffle, but it wasn't anything that couldn't be fixed. There was only an indented side and a few puffs of fumes escaping from the damaged spot. Honestly, with a bit of cash and a good mechanic, the car was capable of returning to its normal state, but who were you to say, you knew almost nothing about vehicles. That said, you couldn’t just sit back and do nothing either. 

When Nami was finished berating the male, she turned her attention towards the damage and sighed, slapping her hand to her forehead. 

“Luffy’s imprisonment and now this. Nothing ever seems to be going for me--”

“For us,” Robin corrected. 

“And it’s all because of a certain mosshead.” You laughed, receiving a light slap to the back of your neck by Zoro. 

“How about you drive next time, if you have complaints.”

“Maybe I will, driving over Luffy wasn’t nearly half as bad as you crashing into a stoplight.” Both Zoro and Nami gave you an unimpressed glare. 

“Instead of fooling around, how about we come up with something. Not only do we need a ride out of here, but we also need to get someone to bail out those four idiots. So, how about we call up an auto-shop and get our car towed while we figure something out. Zoro, does your insurance cover this?” The ginger glanced towards the dazed mint-head.

She snapped her fingers at him to get his attention. 

“We didn’t acquire this car… legally." He sighed, "What makes you think we pay for car insurance?” 

“Oh my, what will we do about this then?” Robin gasped. 

“Fucking hell, Zoro. How have you not gotten pulled over?”

“Usopp knows this guy--”

“Say no more. I don’t need to know.” Nami pinched the bridge of her nose. 

As you guys were about to give up, Robin uttered a quick ‘oh!’ before redirecting her attention back to the group. 

“I may know of someone who’ll fix this car, no questions asked.”

“That sounds... oddly suspicious, Robin, where did you hear this from?” You asked. 

“Franky works at an auto-shop, so he’s heard some gossip from time to time, including ones about other mechanics.”

“That’s great! So, who is it?” Nami asked, a smidgen of hope in her voice. 

Robin grimaced as she continued, “Well, we can always try to call him, but I’m not sure he’ll help us out.”

“First of all, who is it?” Zoro grumbled. 

"Yeah, you're being awfully dodgey about it." You narrowed your eyes at the ravenette in suspicion. 

"The thing is--"

"Oh, for crying out loud, just spill it." Nami snapped, "We don't have time to be bickering on whether he'll help us out or not."

With a sigh, Robin looked up and stated his name. 

The four of you collectively drooped in disappointment. 

“Yeah, I can see why that might be a problem.” You sighed. 

It was Eustass Kid, the one person you'd hoped to avoid. 

“Damn it. Of all the people, of course it had to be Eustass fucking Kid.” Nami snapped, harshly rubbing at her forearms as she paced around the car. 

“Look, we can call the cops and get our asses hauled into questioning or we can call him up. Either way, we have nothing to lose.” Zoro stated. 

True, that seemed to be the only way out. You just wished you hadn’t picked a fight with him the other day. 

“Sure… Only, who’s calling him?” You asked. 

The three of you slowly glanced at you, a determined look in their eyes. 

“Guys--”

“Y/n, you’re the only one who’s ever really interacted with him. Besides,” Nami sidled up to you, slinging an arm over your shoulders as she reeled you in, “He seems to be friendlier with you than any of our other friends.”

“Friendlier? Nami, he wants my head delivered to him on a bloody plate!”

“Minor details. In any case, we need you to do this for us, it's life or death!”

"I sincerely doubt that..."

Perhaps the crash was the least of your worries. Maybe you actually needed to worry about the words that were going to be etched into your gravestone. 

You inhaled sharply as you prepared to deliver a speech to them. There was no way in hell you were going to call him. 

After much deliberation and arguing with the others, you finally conceded defeat, agreeing to call him up. 

'Well, shit,' You thought, 'Maybe I should've attended that one debate club Chopper invited me to...'

With a sigh, you asked, “Can I call Killer instead? We’re more likely to convince him to help us than that red-headed lunatic.”

The others thought about it for a second before nodding in agreement. 

With sweaty palms and a trembling hand, you pulled out your phone and dialed Killer, hoping that he’d agree to your ridiculous request. 

When he picked up, you nervously started with, “Yo, what’s up…," and continued with, "Uhh, I have a dire problem that I'm in need of help with..." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I'm flooded with exams and homework, I might be uploading my chapters a little later than usual.


	13. Arrested??

Luffy had his face squished between the bars as he hollered out to the officers. No matter how long he called out to them, no one came to listen to his pleas.

‘What good was all this screaming if it reached deaf ears?’ Law grit his teeth and pushed down the urge to drill some common sense in the boy.

Truth be told, it was starting to get on Trafalgar’s nerves and he’d have strangled the boy by now if he hadn't been surrounded by his two other brothers. 

“If you’re going to keep us against our will, at least get us something to eat. I’m starving!” The small ravenette whined, his scraggly hand pathetically scraping at air to gain the attention of the individuals outside. 

“Luf, they’re keeping us against our will because  _ we _ broke the law,” The blonde shot a wink towards an unamused Trafalgar, “No pun intended.” 

Law inhaled and exhaled a few times before looking back up at Sabo, narrowing his eyes on the blonde.

‘I must have done something really wrong to have gotten roped in with these idiot brothers.’ 

“You’ve got the whole crowd laughing.” Law crossed his arms and averted his gaze from the blonde’s twinkling eyes. 

“Who says I’m not amused by it?” Ace’s dark eyes flicked up to the other ravenette’s silver ones. 

It came to no surprise to Law that the eldest ravenette would try to find some reason to disagree with him. Much like Kid, Ace seemed to hold a certain… contempt for him.

“Your lack of laughter seems to be the reason.” Law humorlessly smiled at the other boy. 

Sabo rolled his eyes when his brother produced a very fake, very obnoxious laugh to piss off the other ravenette. 

Law’s eye twitched. 

“I see that your lack of subtlety over your resentment towards me hasn’t changed over the years…” 

“My, aren’t you a perceptive one, lanky bastard.” Ace cocked his head to the side and gave the other ravenette a mocking smile. 

“Freckled degenerate.” Law snapped. 

“Mushroom head.”

“Could you guys be anymore immature?" Sabo sighed, pushing down on his brother to prevent him from jumping Law, "And Law, I didn’t expect you to play into Ace’s hands, I thought you were smarter than that.” 

“Hard to do that when your brother is quite literally giving me a death stare.” The ravenette scoffed, averting his eyes from the other male. 

“Luf, help a brother out, won’t you?” Sabo pleaded. 

When they didn’t receive a response, the three turned towards the younger male and were taken aback to see his shriveled body huddled in the corner of the room. 

Ace’s eyes bulged out of his head as he inspected his brother’s frail form. His eyes were sunken in as a trail of drool trickled down from his chapped lips. 

“Meat…” He wheezed, his wrinkled hand reaching for his brother.

“Luffy!” Sabo kneeled by his brother and held his ‘lifeless’ body, shaking it aggressively as he attempted to revive him. Ace merely laughed at Luffy's antics, amused that his immense dependency on food hadn’t changed over the years. 

“I can’t believe I’m in a cell with these imbeciles.” Law sighed as he massaged his throbbing temples. 

He wouldn’t have even gotten himself into this situation in the first place if he had just prevented Luffy from dragging him off to Pete knows where. Had it been just the two of them, he would have easily been able to shove him off, but because his brothers were there, he couldn’t exactly just german suplex the boy. 

_ Now, you’re probably wondering how these four idiots even landed their asses in prison in the first place. Well, you’d have to blame Ace for that.  _

The three gathered, supposedly to spend some ‘brotherly’ time together. Considering the length of time they were away, Law wasn’t surprised that they did, but what bothered him was the fact that they involved him--no,  _ forced _ him to go with them.

At first, it started off as an enjoyable ride in Marco’s car, but what was initially supposed to be a fun event, quickly turned into a dangerous one when Ace started flying on the road. Now, Law wasn’t adverse to doing… questionable things from time to time, but when it involved a troublesome idiot and his two other brothers, well then, that was a different story. Getting out safely, or legally, wasn’t in these trio’s vocabulary. 

It was ride or die with them. 

As Ace was tearing through the highway at 120 mph, nothing seemed to be going wrong, that is, 'till Luffy began hyping him up in the backseat. In Marco’s sports-car, going above 120 mph wasn’t a problem, but it became one as soon as a cop car started trailing behind them. 

Of course, any normal person would have stopped and waited for the officers, but these were Luffy’s brothers--stopping while they were at the pinnacle of their fun wasn’t in their cards. 

That said, instead of doing what any sane human would do, Ace did the exact opposite, opting to flee from the cops.

Though the chase lasted only a mere thirty minutes, Law felt as if it were hours. Eventually, Ace had to stop for gas and there, they were apprehended by a swarm of officers and brought to the nearest precinct.

And the rest was history… 

With a sigh, the ravenette leaned his head against the cool wall of the cell and decided to take a rest. Until someone came to bail them out, there wasn’t much he could do at the moment. 

Though a quick rest would have been nice, knowing the brothers, that was impossible. Even getting a moment of silence would have been asking for a lot. 

That said, he wasn’t surprised when the older brothers began arguing about something. Of what, he had no idea--nor did he intend on asking. 

As Sabo and Ace were fussing over their unconscious brother, they failed to notice the officer walking up to the cell. He banged the butt end of his baton on the bars and gestured to the line of phone-booths by the wall. 

“You’re allowed one call.” He briefly stated before leaving again. 

Law glanced towards the brothers, clearing his throat to get their attention. Sabo was the first to look up, his brow quirking up at the ravenette. 

“Officer came, said we get a call each.”

“That’s great!” The blonde cheered, “Let’s get someone on the line to bail us out! Did you hear that, Luf?” 

The younger ravenette was out cold, unresponsive to Ace’s ministrations. 

“I wouldn’t rely on him for help.” Law crossed his legs and huffed. 

“At least he attempted to do something to help us out. What did you do?”

“Yes, yelling at the officiers to get him food, very helpful.”

“Far more helpful than sitting back and brooding. Wouldn’t you say?” Ace scoffed. 

“Guys--” Sabo warned, “Don’t start.”

With a sigh, the blonde lifted his brother up and jostled him. 

“Give it a second, I can wake him up.” Sabo leaned in and whispered to his younger brother, “We gotta call someone to get us out so we can go and get you some  _ meat _ .”

“Meat?” The boy’s nostrils flared and his eyes popped open, the irises constricting as soon as the light flooded in. 

“What kind,” He asked. 

“Prime rib.” 

“You got a deal,” Luffy stood at attention, “What do you need from me.”

“First, we need to discuss who’s going to bail us out.” Ace blew a strand of hair from his face and focused his narrowed eyes on Law. 

“Uhh,” Sabo thought for a moment before he snapped his fingers at Luffy, “Hey, wouldn’t Shanks be able to get us out? I can’t exactly ask Dragon… If you know what I mean.”

“Shanks?” Luffy pressed his finger to his lips, “Sure!” 

“Great! So… what’s his number?”

“Uhh…” The youngest brother’s brows furrowed as he thought deeply on the matter.

After a moment of silence, Luffy gave up, blowing out a loud raspberry as he massaged his head, probably to stave off the headache from thinking too hard. 

‘Typical idiot.’ Law grumbled to himself. 

The three simultaneously groaned when Luffy shrugged his shoulders. 

“Fuck, Luffy, you’ve been living with him how many years? How have you not memorized his number?” Sabo groaned. 

“I’ve got my priorities and remembering numbers isn’t one of them.” Luffy stated matter-of-factly. 

“Nevermind that, is there anyone else we can call?” Law asked, his eyes flitting between the brothers. 

“Well, my pops isn’t available,” Ace coughed out before glancing away at Sabo who’d been staring at him silently, “and... since we hijacked Marco’s car, I can’t ask him to bail us out without getting myself into hot shit.” 

“That’s fucking fantastic.” Law groaned out, pressing the nubs of his fingers over his eye sockets to relieve some of the tension building up. 

Ace leaned back and nodded his head towards the other ravenette, “If you have complaints, then why don’t you give us a reliable number we can call then, _ emo goth _ ?” 

“For the last time, emos and goths aren’t--”

“--Aren't the same lifestyle. Only an emo goth would say that,” Ace smugly leaned back against the wall to ‘imitate’ Law’s suave posture. 

Sabo grabbed his brother’s ear and pulled on it, “Guys, what the fuck. Cut it out! We’re in a fucking cell and you still have the energy to bicker like children?”

“Children? I only see one child here and he’s wearing a mushroom hat.” Ace cranked out his middle finger and shot the other guy a birdie. 

“That’s real rich, coming from the ‘boy’ who’s not only younger than me, but shorter, and with the intelligence of an amoeba.” 

Luffy's ear twitched from the other ravenette's words. He jumped up from his position and assaulted the man. 

“Torao!” Luffy grabbed at the eldest ravenette’s collar and yanked him forward, aggressively pressing his finger into the man’s chest, “Sure, I might be shorter than you… and younger, but I’m not an idiot!” 

Ace laughed at his brother’s antics.

“Luf, he was talking about Ace.” Sabo sighed. 

Law shoved off the younger brother’s sticky fingers and smirked to Ace, “The fact that he thought my insult was directed towards him goes to show how dimwitted he is. I suppose the rumors about the three of you sharing one collective brain cell must be true.”

“Far better than what they call you, ” Ace crossed his arms and leered down at the other boy. 

Sabo grabbed Luffy and Ace and shoved them towards the corner of the room, reprimanding them on their childish behavior. He then jutted a finger towards the indifferent student on the other end of the room, giving him a pointed glare. 

“Luf, Ace, would you tone it down a bit. And you--,” Sabo pinched his lips and mouthed, “Don’t feed into his anger, will you?”

Law and Ace looked away with a huff, leaving Sabo to mull in his spot and piece together a plan to keep the two from tearing away at each other. 

When the two finally calmed down, Luffy asked, “Can we hurry up and pick someone to call? I’m afraid I might die of starvation if we sit here any longer!”

“Ever the dramatic one.” Ace’s expression hardened at the other’s snide remark. 

“Fucking hell. Okay, okay--” Sabo pointed over at Law and asked, “Do you have anyone in mind?”

Law thought about it for a second. Corazon? No, it wouldn’t do him any good to involve him in this trivial matter. 

Bepo? He wouldn’t even touch a police precinct with a twenty foot pole. 

With a sigh, Law shook his head, earning himself a self-satisfied smirk from the freckled brother. A vein popped on his head. 

“See, for all of his taunting, he couldn’t even think of a single person to bail him out.”

“Ace, for fucks sake,” The blonde walked over to his younger brother and began yanking at him, “and Luffy, stop chewing on the bars, would you?” 

“But, Sabo, I’m hungry…” He whined.

“Well, the sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can get home.” With a sigh, Sabo shrugged before offering his suggestion, “Look, I didn’t want it to come to this, but I might know someone who’ll be able to help, but there’s no guarantee that she won’t murder us after.”

“Who?” Luffy stopped gnawing on the bars to look up at his brother.

“My girlfriend, Koala.”

“Who’s that?” Luffy asked, his head cocked to the side in confusion. 

“His girlfriend, who I’m most definitely avoiding.” Ace shivered, “She’s almost as terrifying as Nami.”

“That’s only because you nearly got me killed in our freshman year of college.” Sabo sighed. “And Luffy,” The blonde slapped the side of his brother’s head, “I’ve been dating her for years, how have you not remembered her?”

Luffy indifferently flicked a booger to the other end of the cell as he gazed up at Sabo, “How should I know?”

“This brat--” 

“Sorry for butting in on your little… dispute,” Law interrupted their conversation as he said, “but, I may know someone  _ better suited _ to get us out.”

“I’m going to pretend that you didn’t just indirectly offend my girlfriend… In my opinion, I think she’d be able to get us out just  _ fine _ !” Sabo stated. 

When no one was paying attention to him, the blonde threw up his hands and laughed in exasperation. 

Ace and Luffy looked up simultaneously, enlivened by the prospect that they’d be able to get out soon. 

“Who?” They asked. 

“Nami-ya.”

“Nami? Oh, right! Nami!” Luffy cheered. 

Both Ace and Sabo grimaced as they recalled the ill-mannered ginger. 

“Yeah, sorry, Sabo, but I think Nami has a better chance of getting us out, no offense to Koala.” 

As much as Law wanted to disagree with Ace, his words were the truth. Although Koala was resourceful, Nami sure knew her way around people, especially one’s involved with the law. 

“Fine, but having her get us out is easy. Paying her back will be a bitch though.” Sabo groaned, rubbing at his temples. 

“That’s something we can think about once we get out. Right now, all we need to do is get in contact with her. That said, anyone remember her number?”

The atmosphere in the cell became gloomy once the four realized that none of them remembered her digits. 

“We’re doomed.” Ace sighed. 

Trafalgar practically grinned at the other’s dejected expression. For some childish reason, he always felt some sense of self-satisfaction when the other was in a bad mood. 

“That’s fine, I might know someone with her right now.” Law coughed out, “And... I might know her number. I believe she’s out with Nami right now, if I recall correctly.” 

At the same time that he said that, Ace snapped his fingers and looked up, a gleam in his eyes as he smirked. 

“I also happen to know someone.” 

Simultaneously, the two ravenette’s suggested, “Y/n.” 

Ace turned towards Law and shot him a glare at him at the same time that the other did. 

“Now, how did you come upon the information of Y/n’s whereabouts?” Ace gave the other ravenette a suspiciously wide smile as he asked this, the corner of his eye twitching as he asked. 

Law clicked his tongue and glanced away, his keen eyes flitting back to the elder brother from time to time to monitor his expression. 

No matter how great Ace was at controlling his expressions, when it came to Y/n, Law could immediately see through his facade. 

“You’re quite the stalker, aren’t you? ” Ace leaned back in his spot and glared down at the gloomy ravenette. 

“I could say the same about you, Ace-ya. Eight years apart and you somehow remember her number.”

“No, you know what, both of you are creepy for that shit.” Sabo sighed, “but, I’m glad you guys remember it… even if it's for your own purposes. Luffy,” The blonde lifted his brother and called out for the officer. “Can you call her? If we let Ace do it, there’s no telling if she’ll hang up and if it’s Law…well…” 

“She’ll definitely hang up if it’s the gloomy bastard.” Ace scoffed. 

“How is that any better than what Sabo said about you?” 

“Are you guys kidding me? Just shut up and let Luffy take the reins from here.” Sabo glared at the two ravenettes. 

Once the officer arrived and took Luffy out to the phone booths, all the three could do was wait for a response. 

Luffy picked up the phone and dialed in the numbers that Sabo had him recite multiple times before going. Once the call went through, the ravenette shouted, “Y/n!” 

“Luffy?” He heard a quiet voice through the other end. It was undeniably yours though. 

The boy excitedly pressed the end of the phone to his ear. In an attempt to understand your words over the loud rumble of the car you were in, he covered his other ear to block out the outside noises. 

“Oh, I thought it might be you! I couldn’t remember your phone number, but I was lucky enough to have both Ace and Torao here to give it to me!”

As the two discussed the possibility of getting out of the station, Luffy suddenly heard a deep, “Is that Y/n? What is she saying?” Looking back, he found Ace’s face sandwiched between the bars to get a better view of his brother. 

"What?" Luffy asked, pressing his hand over the mouth-piece. 

Ace cupped his mouth and shouted, "Tell Y/n that I miss her!" 

Luffy disregarded his brother's stupid request and refocused on the call. 

Nodding, the youngest ravenette turned back to the phonebooth and vaguely explained their situation. When the group on the other end began planning their escape, Luffy asked, “Hey, can you guys get me some meat on the way--,” but before he could finish his sentence, a piercing crash rumbled through the other end of the call.

Then the line went dead… 

“Guys? Y/n? Nami?!” 

When he received no response, Luffy hung the phone on its receiver and sat back for a moment, trying to comprehend what had just happened. 

After a moment of silence, the officer led the lanky boy back to the cell, locking the door behind him. 

Sabo stood up as soon as his brother returned. 

“What did they say?”

“Uhh,” The younger boy scratched at his head as he thought of how he’d word this, “I’m not sure…” 

“Please tell me you’re joking. What did Nami say? Who was there?” 

Luffy became annoyed at the barrage of questions headed his way. With a drawn out huff, he said, “I don’t know. I heard a loud noise and the line cut out. Is that enough?”

“A loud noise? What noise?” Ace sat up in his spot, alert and focused on his brother. 

“A crash, I guess?”

“A crash?” Law’s eyes narrowed. “Like a car crash?”

“Wait, wait, wait. Start at the beginning again.” Sabo demanded. 

Luffy threw his hands up and shrugged, “Fuck--I don’t know. I was going to ask something and suddenly I heard a crash, okay?” 

“What the fuck--So, they got in a car accident? Fucking hell. An arrest and now an accident.” Sabo sat down and pinched the bridge of his nose. 

“Fuck, how’d they even get in a crash in the first place? Who were they with?” Law asked. 

“Uhh, at first Y/n was talking, then Nami took the phone and started asking questions... and I’m pretty sure Robin was there as well…” Luffy pursed his lips and thought on it a while, then his eyes widened when he came to a sudden realization. “Wait, I’m pretty sure Nami told Zoro to drive to the nearest precinct.” 

As soon as he said that, he fell to the floor laughing. 

“What about this is funny to you, exactly?” Law questioned, his anger terribly close to snapping. 

“Don’t you get it? Zoro was driving the car!” 

Everyone balked at his answer and the atmosphere grew tense as the three boys mulled over that information. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck--Nami willingly let Zoro drive the car and Y/n was there?” Ace stood up and walked over to the entrance of the cell. 

“Shit…” Law murmured, dipping his fingers into his scalp to stave the raging headache. 

“We’ve gotta get out  _ now _ .” Ace’s sharp eyes glanced up at his brothers. “I’m going to do something about it.” 

“Wait, Ace, what are you going to do?” Sabo walked over to his brother, placing his hand on his shoulder. 

“What do you think? I’ll do what I’m best at.”

“Being an idiot?” Law questioned. 

Ace shot the ravenette a wink before calling out for the guard. As it turned out, a female had heard his hollering and came over, a questioning look on her face. 

“Hey~” The freckled boy leaned against the wall of the cell and looked the female over, tossing her a charming grin as she stood in front of the bars. 

‘Fucking hell--’ Law looked away and attempted to shove down the second-hand embarrassment he felt from the situation. 

“I was wondering,” Ace drawled, his hooded eyes giving the woman a once over, “If you’d let us out. I promise they’ll be something in it for you.” 

The woman stared at him indifferently before asking, “Are you attempting to bribe a federal officer?”

Ace straightened up and coughed into the sleeve of his shirt, “No, ma’am, absolutely not.”

“I thought not.” She left soon after, but not before tossing Law a flirtatious wink. As an afterthought, she mumbled, “He’s more my type anyways.”

Both Luffy and Sabo broke out in laughter at her words, tears stinging their eyes as their brother watched them, unamused. 

“Children.” Law scoffed, glancing away from the troublesome trio. 

Ace stared at the woman, aghast. How could she look at  _ him _ and think that lanky bastard was her type?

“There goes your genius plan, Ace.” Sabo cleared his throat and gave his brother a pitiful look. 

“Look, she probably just needs to get her eyes checked out. There must be something wrong with her if she thinks that insomniac weirdo is her type.”

“Well, clearly she has better taste than some of the other buffoons that follow you around.” Law rumbled, a smirk gracing his lips. 

“I suppose you’re indirectly bashing Y/n by saying that.” Ace squared up to the other boy, returning a smirk to the other boy. 

“Are you insinuating that Y/n-ya likes you?” Law mockingly added.

Sabo slapped his palm over his face. 

‘What am I to do?’ He thought. 

A few phone calls later, Sabo finally got through to Sanji. After persuading him over the line for a couple of minutes, he returned with a gleeful grin on his face. Once he explained that the cook would bail them out, the other three visibly relaxed. 

Luffy went into a coma over his empty stomach while Ace and Law were left to stew in their thoughts. Though Law was bothered by the fact that he'd have to stay in a cell overnight, Ace was more concerned over the crash. 

Was Y/n alright? Was she injured?

He grit his teeth before looking away, pressing his balled fist into his lap. It wouldn’t do him any good to get heated now, especially in the presence of someone as annoying as Law .

In the morning, they were brought to the front of the precinct. 

Sabo had to carry Luffy out bridle-style, because of his comatose state. Though wrinkly and deprived of food, he was definitely alive.

Sanji was waiting for them in the front, a noticeable scowl on his face. 

“Why the hell did you get here in the fucking morning? Couldn’t you have picked us up last night?” Sabo growled at the other blonde. 

Sanji merely flicked his lighter and lit his cigarette before blowing the smoke on the annoyed brother’s face. 

“You think I had the time to get here while I was taking care of my women, whom, might I add, were in an accident? Don’t think highly of yourselves.” 

Had a woman been with them, Sanji would have ran to the station at speed of light, but as it were, they were just a group of males. 

Both Ace’s and Law’s eye twitched, but they said nothing on it. 

“How are they?” The eldest brother inquired. 

“The girls?” Sanji pulled his cigarette from his lips and exhaled deeply. “They’re fine. Shaken, but fine.” 

“That's good. So, where are they right now?” 

“They’re all hanging back at my place. I told them I’d return as soon as I picked you guys up.”

Ace leaned back against the front counter, raking a hand through his matted hair as he sighed out, “Good, good.” 

“Now that that’s over with, how about we get home.” Sanji gestured for them to follow him. 

Usopp was waiting for them in front of a beat up, decrepit minivan. He waved to them as soon as they exited the station. 

Luffy reached out for his friend and whined, asking for Chopper. When asked why, he merely mumbled, ‘emergency food’, before passing out again, his wrinkly form going lax in his brother’s arms. 

Law inconspicuously ambled over to Usopp’s side and cleared his throat, questioning the boy on Y/n’s health. When he admitted that no one had gotten any serious injuries, the ravenette deflated in relief, his usually hard eyes softening. 

Ace stood back as he silently watched the exchange, his mahogany eyes narrowing on Law. A muscle in the freckled boy’s jaw ticked in annoyance.

He clicked his tongue and walked away, slipping into the van after Sabo. 

‘What was Trafalgar’s relationship with Y/n?’ The more he thought of it, the more irritated he became. He’d been away from her for eight years, there was no telling what had gone down between the two of them. 

Exhaling heavily, Ace watched as Law slipped into the passenger’s seat, quietly observing his surroundings. 

There was something about the silent ravenette that Ace didn’t like… 

Once they made it to Sanji’s place, Luffy bounded out and burst through the door, catapulting himself straight at the unsuspecting pre-med student. Chopper screamed in panic as the boy began to gnaw on his forearm, crying out for help from his friends, but when no one came to the rescue, he began hitting the boy over the head with his medical textbook. The two began wrestling as the other’s entered the house. 

Ace, Sabo, and Sanji snagged the dining table in the corner, near the area where Nami, Robin, and Y/n were currently relaxing. Though Nami and Franky were heatedly arguing about what’d they do about the car, Robin was unwinding with a book in her lap and a glass of wine in her hand. Y/n, on the other hand, was sleeping soundly next to Zoro. She had her head on his shoulder and her entire body was melded to his own. The moss-head looked completely relaxed, with his arms crossed and his head resting atop Y/n’s. 

Both Ace and Torao clicked their tongues in disdain at the scene before them. It was clear that Ace didn’t like what was happening before him, but there wasn’t much he could do about it. After a car accident, the least he could was let Y/n rest, even if it was with Zoro…

Usopp, Chopper, and Luffy were already immersed in a conversation when the two brother’s joined in. 

“--then Ace WWE’d the shit out of this dude who dumped a jug of water over him.” Luffy moved his hounds around as he spoke. 

“Wait, wait, and then what happened?” Chopper laughed, banging his fists on the table. 

“And then the professor came in as soon as Ace threw the guy out of the window. I mean, it was the first floor, but he fucking  _ threw  _ him out of the window like it was nothing.” 

“What did I miss?” Sabo slid down in a seat next to his brother, chuckling when he heard Ace’s name. 

Ace glanced over at his brother and gave him a ‘I heard my name’ look. Sabo laughed, but shook his head at his brother, letting him know that it wasn’t anything important. 

“Oh, Sabo!” Luffy scooted closer to his brother and grabbed onto his arm, “Anyways, enough about the story, don’t you want to know about what happened with the car accident yesterday?”

“That’s right! We never told you what happened!” Usopp cut in, clapping on the table. 

“Wait, there’s more to the whole accident story?”

“Well, not really, but it’s… it’s a lot.” Chopper interjected.

Sabo leaned over his forearms, giving the other’s a questioning look as they laughed at each other. 

“So, after the whole fiasco, Zoro admitted he’d acquired the car illegally and because of that, they had to call someone who’d fix the car--you know, the kind of person who’d do something without asking questions.”

“Right… What are you getting at?” Sabo asked, his brows quirked up in curiosity. 

“They had to call Eustass fucking Kid.” 

“Yikes…” Sabo sucked in his teeth as Luffy began laughing. “They probably got flat out rejected.” 

Usopp leaned in his seat and snapped his fingers, “That’s the thing. He actually agreed to it.”

Sabo gave his brother a side-long glance before focusing on the conversation. Ace wasn’t going to like this… not at all. 

“Wait, he agreed? Why? Wait--first off, who called them?” Sabo leaned in, his curiosity in the matter growing by the second. 

“Who do you think?” Chopper quirked a finger at the female sleeping on Zoro. 

“Y/n?!” Sabo half whispered-half shouted. 

“Yeah, but that’s not the most surprising thing.”

“There’s more?” Sabo shifted in his seat. 

“Kid actually gave them a discount?” 

“What the actual fuck? Tell me you’re lying? That dude--Kid??” 

Sabo leaned back in his chair as he thought about it. So much shit was happening that he didn’t even know where to start, but they all seemed to be connected with Y/n. His brows furrowed as he glanced back at the female. 

Interesting things always seemed to happen around her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's your favorite character(s) in One Piece and why?


	14. The Favor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I listened to HELLION - THUGGER and Alt-J-Fitzpleasure as I wrote this.  
> 

The auto-shop was quite quiet today, save for the occasional clank and the odd cough from the inside. The sound of metal lightly bouncing off each other and the steady stream of music gave off a calm ambience that the men could work to. 

It was a calm October day, one Killer quite liked. 

While Heat and Wire were in the corner discussing the latest order from a customer, planning on how they would go about fixing the car, the rest of the group were fooling around. They were casually smoking cigarettes as they watched the latest game on a small, beat-up television set, occasionally cheering when their favorite team scored a goal. 

'A good day...' Killer thought as he exited his car and began his trek to the front of the shop. 

He strolled into the shop, a box of beers in one hand and a cigarette in the other. Leaning against the entrance, he smiled as he watched his friend roll out from under a car. 

"Killer, the fuck?"  Catching the blonde’s gaze, the redhead scowled, tossing the wrench in his hand over to a tool pile. He grabbed a towel from a rack and began wiping away at the oil and grime on his hands. 

“Chipping away at the anger under that car of yours?” Killer chuckled, tossing a beer to his friend. 

“Fuck off.” 

The red-head popped the top off with ease and chugged the beverage down, wiping the back of his mouth with his arm. 

"Oh, Killer!"  Heat, Wire, and Kid’s other friends showed up, grabbing a drink from Killer before patting him on the back as thanks for the treat. As they retreated back to their corners, the blonde refocused his attention on the red-head, nodding his head towards him. 

“You still pissed off about the other day?” Killer placed the bag of beverages on the floor before sidling up to Kid, handing him a tool as the other slipped back under the vehicle. 

“What do you think?” Wire chuckled, gesturing towards the red-head's deep scowl. 

“I’d be surprised if he wasn’t. I mean, this is Kid we're talking about--but, I hadn’t expected that guy to return so quickly.”

“You mean that one student, uhh, his name started with an A, didn’t it?” Heat asked, grabbing a towel to swipe at the sweat collecting on his forehead. 

“Ace, isn’t it? I can’t believe you thought Y/n was called Ace.” Wire snapped his fingers. 

“Shut the fuck up, Wire, before I beat the shit out of you.” Kid leaned up from under the car and snarled at his friend before diving back down. 

The ravenette held his hands over his head before shrugging off his friend’s threat. 

This was a daily occurrence for them. 

Undeterred by the red-heads foul attitude, Heat asked, "It's a shame Ace showed up when he did..."

"You also need to shut the hell up." Kid growled. 

Killer grimaced at the underlying meaning beneath Heat's words. It really was a shame that the ravenette had shown up when he did. It... complicated things for Kid.

With a sigh, the blonde returned to his little corner of the garage and began tinkering at his most recent creation. As soon as the room grew quiet again, the rest of the group began returned to working on their own projects. 

A little while later, Kid rolled out from his spot under the vehicle and tossed the tools into a discarded pile. He lifted the hem of his shirt and rubbed the grime from his face before glancing over to the blonde. 

Killer pulled his pack of cigarettes out and shook the box at the redhead, offering one to him. 

"Need one?" 

Kid accepted the tab and placed it between his lips, sighing at the familiar sensation of them in his mouth. He then pulled out his lighter and lit it, inhaling the richness before exhaling the smoke, watching as the puffs curled into the air. 

"Fuck, this particular order was a pain in the ass." Kid groaned, massaging at the tense knot in his neck.

"For the price, I'd say the pain was well worth it."

The red-head flipped his friend the birdie before returning to beat away at the sore spot. 

"Then why don't you fucking do it?" 

"Because they asked for the best."

"Don't give me that shitty response." Kid spat as he turned away. 

As the red-head conversed with another member of the shop, Killer suddenly tapped him on his side and nodded to a dark Mercedes parked in front of their lot. 

Breaking away from his conversation, Kid glanced over his shoulder to the vehicle, a dark look passing over his face as he recognized it. 

The red-heads tawny eyes narrowed the driver as his friend’s gathered around him, a menacing aura instantaneously surrounding them. 

"Who the fuck are they?" Someone asked. 

As soon as he did, a small, well-dressed man strolled up to the entrance of the garage, offering the gang of boys a curt nod before inquiring, “Is Eustass Kid here?”

“Who’s asking?” Killer asked, his eyes narrowing behind his mask. 

Kid merely observed the scene before him as he leaned against his car, calmly smoking his cigarette as his friend did the talking. 

“I won’t ask again, where’s Eustass Kid?”

Heat walked to the shorter man and leered over him, questioning the man once more, “And who exactly is asking?” 

With a sigh, the man pulled off his fedora and pushed back his sweat-slicked hair. 

He coughed before replying with, “I think you already know.”

Three other men exited the car and stood behind the shorter one, flexing their muscles and shooting the other’s in the garage a menacing glare as they attempted to size up to them. For all of their posturing, they didn't seem to faze Kid's friends one bit. 

“Is that so?” Kid’s voice had a husky drawl to it.

When the man looked over at the redhead, his eyes grew wide in completely shock. This beast was at least twice his height and had more than three times his muscle mass. 

Kid gave off a slight ‘hmph’ before prowling to the front, sizing up to the man as he gazed down at him with his watchful eyes. 

What the fuck did this little dick-wad want with him, the red-head wandered. 

“Apoo, is it? Has he sent his little lapdog to do the talking for him?” 

"W-Well."

"Well?" Kid crooned, blatantly taunting the man on his speechlessness. "No answer?"

The man swallowed as the red-head blew out a ring of smoke into his face, visibly trying to prevent himself from flinching at the man’s immense aura.

“It matters not who it’s from, only that you evacuate this turf, else you want to risk starting a war.” The fedora- man stammered, quickly losing his bravado amid the presence of the large beast of a man. 

Kid crushed the end of his cigarette on the man’s overcoat before dropping the tad, grinding the remains with his foot. 

“A war, you say?” A vicious smirk found its way on his face as his hands curled around the man’s collar. 

The three bodyguards behind him tensed as Kid grew nearer to their boss.  The red-head's comrades, on the other hand, appeared lax, almost at ease, as if this was just another walk in the park. It was clear that this hadn’t been their first rodeo, nor the first group to have threatened them. 

“Apoo is too much of a coward to face me, but,” Kid lifted the man up to face level, grinning menacingly as he whispered, “Doflamingo isn’t, is he?”

The man’s eyes widened at the red-head, shocked by his confession. His legs began flailing beneath him as he attempted to gain purchase. “H-How did you know?”

“You don’t think I don’t know what goes on in my territory? Doffy’s not the only one with eyes and ears around here.” Kid hummed, his fingers digging deeper into the man's shirt. 

“Then you must know how much influence he has around here. If he so wished, he could wipe you and your pathetic gang from the face of the earth. You’d do well to heed my words, Eustass.” Hiding his fear, the man opted to smile instead, his hands gripping at the lapels of Kid’s shirt. 

“Are you threatening me.” The red-head dropped the man and leaned against the entrance, glaring down at the quivering individual.

The man scrambled back and hid behind the safety of his men, clearing his throat before announcing, “It’s a warning, one you’d best remember. Doflamingo doesn’t tolerate insubordination.”

“If I was intimidated by every sub-par gangster to come my way, I wouldn’t have lived this long.” 

Wire and Killer moved behind their leader, staring down the other bodyguard’s as their boss leered down at the pathetic man. Kid cracked his knuckles before kneeling down beside the other boss, grabbing his shirt to yank him forward. 

“Now, get the fuck off of my turf before I send the heads of your men back to your leader.” 

The man quickly crawled to his men, getting up to hop into the passenger seat of his car, but before leaving, he stammered out a hesitant, “D-Doffy won’t like this! B-Be p-prepared to hear back from him.” 

“I’m looking forward to it.” Kid strolled back into the garage as soon as the car peeled from the lot, creating a dust cloud as it shot down the road. 

“Fucking pussys.” He grabbed a beer bottle and uncapped it, swallowing the entirety of the beverage in one gulp. “Where the fuck do they get the confidence to threaten me?”

Heat, Wire, Killer, and the rest of the gang relaxed as soon as Kid returned to normal, continuing to work around the shop like normal. To them, this kind of encounter was as normal as breathing. With Kid around, there was always a chance that they’d be threatened or brutally bludgeoned by some other group, though, most times, the red-head would just outright destroy the gang if that happened to his members. The man never tolerated threats or insults, especially if they directed towards his comrades. For all of his intimidation, he was quite the caring individual. 

That said, something about this whole situation didn't sit right with Killer. Deciding to do something about it, he walked up to his friend and discussed with him about it. 

“Kid, I know this is routine to you, but this wasn’t just the usual threat. This is fucking Donquixote Doflamingo we’re talking about.”

“Fucking hell--I know.” Kid raked a hand through his red strands, pulling the loose ends over his goggles. 

“Then what the hell are we going to do?” Heat fiddled a wrench he’d found abandoned in a pile. 

“Just don’t draw attention to our group and stay on the low for a while. I’ll think of something.” The man then lit another cigarette and took a long puff of it. 

“Kid, you know that isn’t enough. We need to ask Mi--”

“Shut the fuck up, Killer.” The blonde closed his mouth as soon as Kid’s wrathful gaze fixed on him. Despite his cool demeanor, he could tell his friend was raging on the inside. One wrong word and he was about to become a dog's next meal. 

"Fuck,"  The blonde watched as his friend crushed the bottle of beer in his hand, tossing the shards into the garbage in anger.  “You know I don’t grovel to others for help. I’ll handle this shit myself.” 

The redhead bumped into Killer before walking straight back to his car, preparing to work on the vehicle again. 

The blonde held his friend back and pressed a finger to his chest accusingly. 

The conversation was far from over to Killer. There was much he needed to discuss with the red-head in the way of plans. 

Heat and Wire silently observed their friends exchange heated words. The two wagered that the argument wouldn’t last long, not with the way Kid was currently like. He was mere seconds from murdering everyone there. 

Just as the redhead was about to deliver the first blow, the shrill cry of a phone cut through the heated tension, breaking the two from their argument. Everyone looked at the illuminating device in Killer’s pocket, internally sagging in relief at the welcome distraction. 

‘Saved by the bell,’ Heat and Wire thought to themselves, wiping the sweat from their brows. 

“Give me a second,” Killer murmured as he walked out of the garage, lifting the device to his ear. 

“Yo, what’s up…” The individual on the other end coughed out before continuing with, "Uhh, I have a dire problem that I'm in need of help with..."

Killer’s brows furrowed in confusion. “Who’s this?”

“O-Oh, right! It’s Y/n!” The other person stammered out. 

The blonde’s stern expression immediately morphed into one of relief, a small smile blessing his face. 

“I didn’t think you of all people would call here.” Killer leaned against the filthy wall of the auto-shop, breathing in the cool, crisp October air as he attempted to drown out the events of today with Y/n’s voice. 

“Right, about that, I actually need a favor.” 

The blonde massaged his temples as he sighed out, “Look, as much as I’d like too, I don’t think right now is a good time. I’m really sorry, Y/n.”

“Did I call at a bad time? I'm really sorry about that. Again, I’m sorry for bugging you, I’ll--”

The other end crackled as someone snatched the phone away. 

“Nami here! Look, Killer, we really need your help. I’m sorry if we’re inconveniencing you, but I’m sure your issue isn’t as dire as ours.”

‘You’d be surprised.’ Killer chuckled to himself before refocusing on the conversation. 

“I suppose I can hear you out.” He sat down on a nearby bench and used his shoulder to prop the phone to his ear as he whipped out a cigarette. 

As Nami explained their current predicament, Killer couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation. It wasn't much better than his problem, to say the least. 

“Killer, we need someone who’ll operate on the car, but under the radar, if you get what I mean.” 

Killer flicked the ashes of his cig onto the floor, blowing out a puff as he asked, “If you got into an accident, wouldn’t your first course of action be to contact the police?”

“As much as I would have liked to do that, Zoro didn’t exactly acquire this car… legally, which made calling them out of the question.” 

The blonde threw back his head and laughed. 

“I expected as much from Luffy’s friend, but,” Killer sighed heavily, “I can’t exactly do anything without Kid’s approval. As much as I’d like to help you, nothing goes without the consent of the boss.” 

“Fuck,” Nami groaned. “Isn’t there anything we could do to persuade you? We’re even willing to pay a little extra for the trouble.”

“Look, just let me pass this by Kid real quick--” Yet, before Killer could even finish his sentence, he heard a loud, “Don’t bring Kid into this! Please, Killer!” 

Y/n’s voice was desperate as she pleaded with him. 

Sighing once more, the blonde scrubbed his thick hair back and carefully explained that he’d get his ass beat if he operated on a car, especially an illegally acquired one without Kid’s approval. There wasn’t much he could do without gaining the consent he needed, no matter how much he liked Y/n’s friends. 

“Think about it like this, you have nothing to lose if I ask Kid. It’s an opportunity you might want to take, given the situation that you’re in.” 

"Hold up for a second. We'll... talk about it."

Killer listened to the bickering on the other end, amused by Y/n’s adamant pleas to not involve the hot-headed redhead. Considering the little quarrel they had the other day, he felt sympathetic for the small girl. 

“Killer, whatever you do, don’t call Kid. Please. He’ll kill me.” Y/n hissed into the phone. 

“Y/n, Kid isn’t as bad as you think.” Killer’s head swerved to the side when he heard the redhead call out for him. 

"Wait, who's that?" Y/n called from the other end. 

Though the blonde tried to hide the phone from his friend's view, nothing escaped the red-head's perceptive eyes. 

“Oi, who have you been calling for the past ten minutes. It’s pissing me off.” 

“Kid, I--Y/n--” The blonde's gaze flitted from his friend's face to the phone, unsure of what to do. 

“Kids there?!” He heard Y/n cry out on the other end. “Fuck--” Crackling ensued as the device was thrown into another person's hands. 

The redhead plucked the phone from Killer’s grasp and held it to his ear, gruffly asking out, “Who the fuck is this?” 

There was a prolonged silence on the other end as the red-head waited for a response, when he didn’t, he carefully added, “I’m hanging up if you won’t answer.”

“Wait, wait--,” Nami cleared her throat and nervously asked, “We need a favor from you.” 

“Is that so?” The red-head smirked as he leaned against the bench Killer was currently sitting on, rolling the phone in his hand. “I’m rather curious on why the owner of the phone isn’t directly asking me for a favor.”

There was another moment of dreaded silence as the people on the other end grew nervous. Shuffling and muffled whispers could be heard as the device was, yet again, passed to another pair of hands. 

“If you aren’t going to help us, we might as well just find another place.”

A vein appeared on Kid’s forehead as he recognized the gruff voice. 

"Zoro." 

Kid's grip on the device tightened. Of all the people that had to pick up, why was it that insufferable moss-head?

“Listen, shit-face, you came seeking help from me, not the other way around.” The redhead growled into the phone. “And, don’t pick up that fucking tone with me if you want my aid, boy." The man inhaled deeply before continuing, "Now, do you want to try that again?”

Zoro heaved a sigh as he ‘politely’ requested, “We need someone to tow our car to an auto-stop and repair it, no questions asked.” 

The red-head grinned at the moss-head's response. He knew how much it teared up the swordsman to have to grovel to him for help. The fact that he did, though, only went to show how dire their situation was, else he would have never done so. 

“Since you so kindly asked…” Kid lifted the receiver to his mouth and whispered, “No.”

A look of pure glee passed over his face as he heard the disgruntled groan of the brute on the other end. 

“Fuck this. It’s clear he won’t help us out.” Zoro grunted as he tossed the phone back to Nami. 

“Kid, we’ll owe you for this inconvenience. Hell, we’ll even pay extra for it.” The ginger pleaded with the red-head, desperation bleeding into her voice. 

Kid seemed to be enjoying this little talk immensely, much to the relief of the blonde. This was a good distraction from what had happened before.

Killer observed his friend from the bench, taking note of the red-heads expression as he continued conversing with the person on the other end of the call. There was no telling what he’d do. After that little fiasco with the man in the garage, Killer wasn’t sure if he’d verbally decimate the people on the other end. One wrong word and the red-head was sure to rain hell down upon them. 

"'I'd rather slit my own throat than help you out, but..."  Kid licked his lips and brought the device closer to his lips, slyly adding, “Tell you what, if the owner of this phone grows some balls and decides to ask me for the favor, I’ll consider it.” 

The red-head played with the end of his phone as he awaited for, what Killer assumed to be, Y/n’s response. Now this was worrisome. 

There was more muffled whispering and crackling as the group on the other end deliberated on the matter. No matter how long they discussed to one another about the issue, it was abundantly clear to Kid that he’d get what he wanted. Afterall, could Y/n really afford to deny his generosity? 

“Am I to take this silence as a no?” 

“Wait!” Nami cried over the phone, “Give us a second!” 

Kid heard a cacophony of, 

“He’s going to kill me!”

“I’m not going to do it.”

And, “Y/n, please, just do it," f rom the others.

A while later, a quiet, “Y/n here.”, could be heard from the other end. 

Kid’s grin formed into a deep smirk as he played with the end of the phone. The fact that this golden opportunity dropped into his hands seemed to brighten his mood, which was a great distraction from the bitch-ass mobster from before. 

“I heard you needed a favor from me, Scooter.” 

“W-Well, yes.” You hesitantly added. 

“And you think I’ll kiss your hand and accept it without a question after that little stunt you pulled the other day?” The red-heads smirk seemed to only grow deeper the more you hesitated. 

He enjoyed the way you squirmed under his authoritative words. 

“S-Shit. I knew we shouldn’t have called Killer for help.” 

“Don’t give up so quickly, Scooter, you’re making me awfully disappointed in you.” The red-head watched as a puff of his own breath curled into the air as he asked, “That aside, did you enjoy watching your little boyfriend argue with me?”

'Was he alluding to the event that had happened with Ace a few days ago?' You thought to yourself. 

“He’s not my boyfriend, first of all. Second, I found absolutely nothing entertaining about that shit from the other day.” 

Kid’s smile deepend at the confession. The red-head situated himself next to his friend and rested his arm atop the bench, bending over the phone as he purred, “I’ll throw you a bone here. I’ll agree to your little request and I’ll even toss in a discount, but only if--”

“If?” you asked, a little too breathlessly. 

All was going according to Kid’s plan. Little ‘ol Y/n had fallen right into the red-heads hands.

“If you agree to a favor of mine.”

“A favor?” 

That sounded shady as hell. Could you really agree to this ridiculous proposition? What did Kid want from you?

Well, it couldn’t have been good, that much was true. 

“Don’t worry about the details. I’ll just come by some other time to take you up on it.”

“And what does this favor entail?”

“Not important.” He smirked. 

With a sigh, you asked, “Can you at least tell me if it’s legal or not?”

“No promises.” 

Y/n thought about it for a moment. Whatever Kid had in mind wasn’t good. It was likely that he just wanted to use the favor to lure you in an alley to kill you. 

Yet, his deal seemed too good to pass up. That said, you couldn’t just blindly agree to it either. 

Nothing was ever predictable with the redhead. 

Hesitantly, you responded with, “Fine. I agree to your terms.” 

Kid looked back and gestured to Heat. The man came up behind him and gave him an inquisitive look. 

“Tow Y/n’s car here. I’ll send you the address in a second.” 

You shivered at the deep baritone of Kid’s voice as he spoke back to you. 

“I’ll hold you to the deal, Scooter. Better not forget, you hear?” 

A moment later, Nami responded with, “Yup! We got it!”

Kid scowled at her voice. 

“Did I say she could fucking leave?”

“About that… she passed out. I think the stress got to her.”

Kid huffed out in annoyance before accepting the situation. Regardless of her absence, nothing could bring his mood down, not after he’d finally gotten what he wanted. 

The red-head pressed on the hang-up button before tossing the phone back to his friend. 

While his friend was smugly grinning to himself, Killer couldn't help but think back to what just happened. He was absolutely shocked by his friend’s sudden transformation. One moment, Kid was fuming about the whole ordeal that went down in the garage, and the next, he was in a cheery mood with Y/n. What the fuck was going on? Not that he was complaining, of course, but it was still... weird. Kid in a good mood was far better than Kid in a bad mood.

  
  



	15. Homecoming!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're finally here!  
> I have a lot planned for this party, actually.

After a long week of stressing over Zoro's car and Luffy's imprisonment, you had naught to do but relax on the weekend. It was the relief and the time alone that you needed in order to recuperate for the next week. With exams coming in soon, you didn't exactly have the time to sit back and laze about just yet.

That said, a good event was the ideal way to take your mind off of these things... 

_4 hours before the party..._

**Mugiwara Crew**

**Nami:** So, here’s the plan. We’re going to meet up at Shakky’s before going to the party.

 **Nami:** Considering Zoro crashed his car, we're going to have to use Usopp's van to get there. 

**Zoro:** That wasn’t my fault. You were screaming in my ear, woman.

 **Sanji:** Don’t talk to Nami-san like that you stupid, moss-head.

 **Zoro:** Say that again, I dare you. 

**Usopp:** L

 **Chopper:** L

 **Nami:** Guys, shut the fuck up. 

**Luffy:** WOOOOOO! P.A.R.T.Y. I hope they have meat!

 **Nami:** Don’t worry, I’m sure they have plenty for you.

 **Nami:** That aside, we need to convince Y/n to go. 

**Luffy:** She’s not going? I thought she said she was!

 **Robin:** Clearly you haven’t been paying attention. 

**Nami:** I've tried convincing her...

 **Chopper:** And?

 **Nami:** And it didn't work, so we'll have to resort to other methods. Our only option is to bribe her into going...

 **Franky:** That's SUPER~ suspicious. If she doesn’t want to go, why are we forcing her to?

 **Y/n:** Yeah, Nami, why are you trying to force me to go. :(

 **Nami:** Luffy, you forgot to take her out of the group chat.

 **Luffy:** Oops. 

**Usopp:** 'Oops', you know he wouldn't remove his best friend from the GC. Shouldn't have relied on him. 

**Y/n:** Woah, woah, woah. Don't remove me!

 **Y/n:** Look, I don't need any convincing, but I’ll be willing to take a little bribe! :)

 **Usopp:**... Bribe?

 **Luffy:** Meat! Works every time. 

**Y/n:** Close, but no. Something… sharper… 

**Robin:** Something sharper than meat? I don't think I can think of anything close to your description.

 **Sanji:** Kitchen knives?

 **Usopp:** That's not even close to meat.

 **Chopper:** I don’t think she wants that…

 **Nami:** Y/n, you little shit. ;)

 **Zoro:**... 

**Zoro:** Fuck.

 **Y/n:** I’ll go if you let me use your swords! Just once, please, Zoro!

 **Chopper:** Swords aren't even close to meat. Why would you use 'close' if it wasn't even related to it?

 **Y/n:** Dunno.

 **Usopp:** Somehow, your use of 'swords' sounds... dirty.

 **Robin:** Oh my. 

**Nami:** Please, that’s the one thing I don’t want to imagine. 

**Nami:** And Zoro, just let her fool around with them. What do you have to lose?

 **Zoro:** My swords... Knowing her, she might just break them.

 **Y/n:** 100% not true. That’s all Luffy.

 **Luffy:** Hey! :(

 **Y/n:** :)

 **Nami:** Now that we have Y/n’s confirmation, all we need to do is deliver her dress to her apartment. Zoro, you’re going there. Bring your swords. 

**Nami:** Chopper, go with Zoro so he doesn’t get lost. 

**Nami:** Am I clear?

 **Chopper:** Yesssss.

 **Zoro:** >:(

 **Y/n:** >:) 

**Y/n:** All clear, ma’am!

 **Sanji:** WOOO! A party with stunning women!

 **Luffy:** Meat!!!

 **Usopp:** Let’s gooooooo.

 **Franky:** SUPPERRRRR!!!~

Dropping your phone onto your desk, you quickly unchanged and hopped into the shower, eager to wash away the smell of school from your body. 

Once you were finished, you blow-dried your hair and twined it with Nami’s curler, giving yourself natural waves to compliment the easy-going look you were going for. 

It looked quite good, you thought.

Not as good as Nami's usual hair, mind you, but pretty good nonetheless. 

When you were satisfied with the top half, you applied a light face of makeup, sticking mainly to mascara and lipstick to finish off the look.

When you were satisfied with your appearance, you exited the bathroom and lazed about on your bed, watching a few episodes of Vinland Saga to pass the time. 

An hour later, a curt knocking broke you from your thoughts. 

You turned your phone off and hopped off the bed, padding to the entrance.

Opening the door, you immediately recognized the two idling by the front. Smiling at the pair waiting on the other side, you gave them a thorough check, nodding in approval at their outfits.

"Looking good!" You shot them a thumbs up. 

Upon examining the two, you instantaneously noticed the three swords dangling from the hip of the mint-head, a deep grin marking your face as you shot the mint-head a devious look. He recoiled, placing his hands protectively over his katanas. 

Your heart elevated at the sight of them. 

“My, don’t you look just handsome, Zoro.” You wiggled your brows at the frowning swordsman, laughing when he huffed indignantly at you. “You also came with the swords!”

On one hand, you had a frowning mint-head, and on the other, you had a beaming brunette who was clearly unfazed by his brooding companion. Their two clashing personalities never ceased to amuse you. 

“We’re here!” Chopper declared, reeling you into a tight hug before pulling back. “And we come bearing gifts!” 

The small male fished through his knit-bag, pulling out a small package. 

“The dress, I’m guessing?” 

Chopper nodded. 

As you were about to grab the parcel, you suddenly became curious about what the other male was doing. 

Flitting your gaze towards the grumpy swordsman, you smiled when you realized what he had been fidgeting with. 

“Fuck--” When Zoro popped the first few buttons of his shirt and furiously fanned at his body, you couldn’t help but laugh at his uncomfortableness.

“Let me guess, Nami made you wear the suit?” You gestured to his black slacks and unkempt dress shirt. 

“What do you think?” The male glanced around the interior of your dorm before resting his gaze back on your disheveled appearance. “She wouldn’t let any of us get away with going in our casual attire.”

“Sounds like Nami alright.”

You grabbed the bag from Chopper’s hand as you told them to make themselves at home as you prepared yourself. 

"Right, well, I'll change up real quick." 

“Don’t take too long!” You heard Zoro call out as he went right back to working on his blades. 

An audible sigh could be heard as you closed the bathroom door behind you. 

'Sheesh...' You thought, 'Impatient much?' 

Ambling to the sink, the first thing you did was examine the outfit Nami had selected. It was a beautiful blood orange ensemble; a strappy two piece that showed off a glorious amount of your legs and your shoulders. Had you a choice in the matter, you would have picked something a little more modest, but there was nothing you could do about it now.

It was something you wouldn’t pick out for yourself, that much was sure, but you trusted Nami’s taste in clothing. 

Tossing your PJs into the dirty laundry, you carefully undid the packaging around the outfit before holding it up. 

‘It’s just one night,’ You thought to yourself as you shimmied yourself into the dress.

‘It’s so tight…’ 

You fiddled with the hem nervously as you deliberated on the decision to wear it.

Would you even look good in it? What if the others made fun of you? 

Shaking the thoughts from your head, you decided not to ponder on those negative things. It wouldn't do you any good to get yourself down right before the party...

“I can do this.” You declared, pumping your fist into the air to boost your confidence. 'I've been through worse! A party should be no problem!'

As you slowly lifted your gaze, your eyes widened as they stared back at the woman in the front of you. 

Looking into the mirror, you couldn't quite believe who was gazing at you.

She was… quite cute… 

You swallowed a lump in your throat and bit down on your lip as a thought occurred to you. 

‘Would… he like it?’ 

Fuck, what the hell were you thinking? Was this the time to be wondering about other people's opinions?

You pinched your arm and hissed out, immediately recoiling from the pain. 

It was a good wakeup call, to say the least... 

‘Nope, dispel those thoughts, Y/n. Tonight, we’re not going to think about boys.’

With a grin, you pondered about the upcoming event. 

There was a feeling of giddy excitement that built up in the core of your stomach.

How long had it been since you last attended a party, or one as big as this one? Not for a good while, at least. 

This was going to be a good distraction from the stresses of your class and your upcoming exams.

'Phew...' Pushing the emotions down, you took a moment to collect yourself as you glanced up at the mirror. 

“Hey there, good looking.” You smooched at the girl. 

After a moment to process what you had just done, you crouched down and cringed at yourself. 

'Yikes...' 

The embarrassment hit you like a brick wall. 

‘Nope, I can’t do this…’ 

A moment later, you stood back up and smiled at the mirror, thinking to yourself, ‘Yes, I fucking can.’

No one would notice you in the party anyways. What did you have to fret about?

You shot a wink to the girl reflecting back at you before moonwalking to the bathroom door, yanking it open to greet the others. Chopper shot up at the sudden sound, his hand flying to his chest in panic.

“Shit, you scared me--”

His eyes widened as soon as they landed on you, gleaming in delight at your shocking appearance. 

“You like?” You did a little twirl in front of the boy before flattening your hands on the edge of your skirt.

Zoro looked you over before glancing back down, fiddling with his swords once more. 

“You look really nice, Y/n!” Chopper excitedly hopped around you, checking out the body-tight outfit before exclaiming, “You look like a whole ‘nother person! I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a dress before!”

You looked down shyly, offering the brunette a quivering smile as you assessed his glimmering eyes. 

“Well, that’s because they aren’t really for me. People like Nami and Robin just suit ‘sexy’, do you know what I mean?”

“You don’t necessarily have to be sexy in order to wear a dress.”

You shrugged at the brunette. It wasn’t that you hated dresses, necessarily, you just never had occasion to wear one. This was, perhaps, one of the only times you could. That said, you weren’t exactly excited to walk out into the cold night with nothing but a little piece of cloth to keep you warm. Even Zoro, who often overheated in just a tank top, looked cold. 

Shaking your head, you refocused on the two ahead of you. 

Leaning over, you poked Zoro's shoulder, nodding your head towards his swords. “Can I hold one of them?”

“No.” He gruffly replied. 

“You promised!” You pouted, crossing your arms to mimic the moody swordsman. 

Remembering the deal he made with you over the phone, he grumpily agreed to your request. 

Rolling his eyes, he reluctantly handed you Kitetsu, but not before warning you to be careful with it. There was nothing more important than his swords, after all. 

“Sandai Kitetsu! A fairly rare one!” You proclaimed, carefully examining the sheath of the sword.

Upon closer examination, you could tell it was expensive by the intricate carvings and designs snaking down the length of it. You expected nothing less from Zoro. Only he would go for the best of the best--much like your father. 

Unsheathing the katana, you held the glimmering blade to the light, watching as the light glinted off of its end. 

“Quite heavy.” You lifted the weapon with both hands, holding it high over your head as you smoothly transitioned into a swordsman stance. 

Zoro’s eyes narrowed on you as you perfectly mimicked a samurai’s posture. Not too stiff, not too lax, just the perfect amount of flexibility to immobilize an enemy. 

“Are you familiar with swords or something?”

“Or something.” You laughed, sheathing the sword before handing it back to him. “I pretty much grew up with them.” 

“Grew up with them?” 

“Yeah,” You walked to the door and opened it, stepping out of your dorm and into the cool passageway connecting the other students’ rooms. 

Glancing back at the two, you added, “My father’s Mihawk.”

Zoro’s eyes bulged from his head as he processed that information. Your father was mother-fucking Dracule Mihawk?

“Wait, as in Dracule Mihawk? The number one swordsman in the world?” The man quickly sidled up to you, gripping your shoulders as he aggressively prodded you for answers. You recoiled from his touch and gave him an uneasy look.

“Who’s Dracule Mihawk?” Chopper walked up to the two of you, his confused gaze flitting between his two companions. 

“Just my dad.”

“You wouldn’t know,” Zoro commented impatiently before redirecting his attention to you. He didn’t have the time nor the patience to explain to Chopper who exactly Mihawk was. If he didn't know, he didn't know, and that was his loss. 

“Fucking hell, Y/n. How did I not know this?” He pressed on. 

“I didn’t think it was that much of a big deal. It’s the 20th century after all, swords aren’t of much use against guns.” You retorted, lifting your brows inquisitively at his unusual eagerness. 

“It’s a big fucking deal.” 

You cleaned out your ear and flicked the remainders away as you gave Zoro a half-assed shrug. Not wanting to talk about this any longer, you decided to leave the other two and get a head-start on the daunting walk to the parking lot.

As you began walking away, you heard Zoro call out. 

“We are far from over with this conversation!” 

“Fine, fine.” You nonchalantly waved your hand back at him as Chopper hooked his arm around yours, dragging the two of you out of your room.

You quickly let go to lock up your dorm before looping your arm back around him. 

The three of you walked down the hall before taking the elevator to the first floor. Once you were there, you left the dormitories and made for the sidewalk, immediately hissing out in uncomfortableness at the freezing temperatures. 

Maybe you should have brought a coat with you. Glancing back at your dorm, you shook your head. 

'Nah, I'm too lazy.'

“Fuck, its cold.” You clutched the sides of your arms and shivered uncontrollably as you walked next to your companions, huddling next to Chopper for warmth. 

Zoro, though, seemed unfazed by the frigid weather. 

Looking over to the moss-head, you asked, “Where’s the car?” 

He glanced down at you and shrugged, “We crashed it, don’t you remember?”

You tossed your hands up in exasperation. “What about money? We can hail a cab, can’t we?”

“Nami took all of it.”

“Seriously?” Chopper wrapped his hand around your arm and pulled you closer, desperate for warmth to stave off the coldness of the night. 

“Can I at least hold one of your swords, Zoro?” 

Well that certainly came out from nowhere… 

“Why?” He gave you an odd look. 

“I feel like holding it will bless me with warmth.” 

“That makes absolutely no sense.”

“Zoro,” You whined. 

He slapped at your wandering fingers, tossing a warning glance your way before sauntering down the sidewalk. 

“I’ll never let you hold them again, even if we freeze to death out here. That one time was your only chance.”

“That’s not fair.” You bit back, watching as the mint-head began cluelessly walking the opposite way of your designated location. 

“Guys, less talk about swords, more talk of how we’re going to get there.” Chopper mused.

“Fine.” 

You thought about the situation for a moment, massaging your temples as you figured out a plan. When nothing came to mind, you bent down and unhooked your heels, slinging them over your shoulders as you began marching straight ahead. 

Honestly, thinking was never your forte and you certainly weren't going to start now. 

When in doubt, trust Luffy....

What would he do?

'He'd probably walk,' You thought to yourself. 

“What are you doing?” Zoro inquired, his brow lifted in amusement at your odd action. 

“What do you think? If we’re going to walk there, I’d rather walk in comfort than in pain.” 

“Are you kidding me?” Chopper yelped, his hands curling around his thin frame. “We can’t just walk there.”

“Why not?” Both you and Zoro asked, looking back at the small brunette. 

‘They’re insane.” Chopper thought, staring at his friends in horror as they began to walk off. He didn’t expect much from Zoro, but from you? 

After a moment of silence, a realization dawned on the brunette. Glancing back at the pair before him, he nodded at the idea. 

‘Actually…’ Chopper pursed his lips and thought about it. 

Maybe you weren’t all that different from them…

With how alike you were to Luffy and Zoro, maybe you were used to acclimating to absurd situations. Maybe this was just another walk in the park for you. 

Driving, what was that when there was walking?

Sighing in defeat, the brunette followed after the other two, hobbling close behind in fright of losing sight of them. 

_______________

As the three of you followed the GPS on the phone, you often found yourself getting lost in various parts of the campus.

Maybe following Zoro wasn’t the best of ideas after all... 

Backtracking to the most familiar location, you began your trek through the university once again, plotting the various houses to familiarize yourself with the area. 

After a while, you gave up, tossing the device into Chopper’s hands. The two of you followed after the brunette as he circled around the various neighborhoods, pointing out to each of the mansions, asking if it was the right one. When the two of you shrugged, Chopper gripped his hair and yelled out in frustration. 

He was paired with the absolute worst in their group. 

Three hours and ten arguments later, the group finally made it to the right house. Your feet and face were a bright red from the cold and you were sure your fingers were purple from frostbite. Zoro and Chopper weren't much better either. The two of them were quietly shivering in their boots as they sidled up to you, pressing on each side of your body to gather what little warmth you had left. 

You really should have brought a jacket or at least something to cover up your bare skin... not that it mattered anymore. 

The heat of the party should warm you back up.

With a sigh, you hobbled to the front and slipped into your heels again, dangerously trudging to the front porch.

As you stared at the large, luxurious building, you couldn’t help but feel tiny compared to it. 

The jitters were hitting you right about now… 

To say you were nervous was an understatement, you felt as if you were about to throw up.

You felt like a teenager attending her first party again... 

Now that you were standing in front of the mansion, you couldn’t help but feel that walking into it was a daunting task. Who knew what lurked behind those large, glassy doors? 

Drunk students? Probably?

A raging Ace? Most likely... 

Your group of friends, mainly Luffy, creating havoc? Definitely... 

From where you stood, you could hear the thumping music and the crash of a fight nearby. Stroboscopic lights flashed overhead the closer you got, illuminating the night sky above. 

You clutched the edge of Chopper’s shirt as the three of you gathered in front of the entrance. You were scared of what it would be like, not that your mint-head companion cared much.

He was more eager to get to the sake before the other students could hog it... Not that it mattered much, considering you'd arrived to the party three hours after it had started. 

The swordsman swiftly tugged on the doors, opening it to allow a gush of cool air into the overheated room. 

With a sigh, you followed your alcohol driven friend, your eyes flitting to the various dancing bodies in the first room. 

As soon as you stepped in, all you could see was the gyrating bodies of intoxicated students and the aerial, flashing lights above you. 

Overwhelmed by the suddenness of everything, you stepped back, bumping into Zoro on the way. He mumbled something in protest, but moved to the side to give you some free space. 

The music was so loud you were sure that your earbuds would strain by the end of the night, or worse, you’d lose your hearing completely. 

But, that was a thought for another time. You were here to have fun, weren't you?

With a smile and a gleam in your eye, you shoved through the mass of bodies to get even deeper into the party.

'Fashionably late...' You thought, 'Just great...'

'I hope no one notices me.'

Oh, how wrong you were about that...

Your night was about to be anything but peaceful.


	16. Oops?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ya'll, I swear the next chapter is going to be better! I PROMISE YOU.  
> In any case, I'll be dropping a list of songs to listen to while you're reading this. I swearrrrrrr they'll get you into the mood.  
> 1\. Disturbia by Rihanna (slowed)  
> 2\. Rockabye by Clean bandit (slowed)  
> 3\. S&M by Rihanna (slowed)  
> 4\. Only girl by Rihanna (slowed)
> 
> Pleaseeee, Rihanna's songs just ooooooze party vibes.

One moment, you were holding onto the end of Zoro’s shirt, the next, you were staring at an empty pocket of space before you. 

What the hell had happened between the moment you were looking away and the moment the mint-head was mumbling about his sake? There was no way he could have disappeared that fast.

But... now that he was gone, you couldn't exactly do anything about it. 

As you panicked at the possibility of having lost your friend a mere minute into the party, you hadn’t even noticed the nervous hand gripping your arm and when you did, you freaked out. 

The individual started tugging on you, pulling you out of your daze and back into the raging night of drunkards, flashing lights, and chaotic idiots. 

‘What the fu--’ You glanced downwards, your heart stabilizing when you realized that it was just your friend. 

'At least one of them stayed behind…' You thought. That was better than nothing.

Parties made you terribly nervous, especially when you were surrounded by a horde of strangers. 

“Chopper, fucking hell,” Rubbing away at the goosebumps on your arm, you peered over to your friend and asked, “Do you know where Zoro went?”

When he shrugged, you grumbled, “Stupid marimo…” 

He probably got lost on the way to the minibar.

Serves him right. 

The brunette peeked over your shoulder and nodded towards the open bar, “He probably went to drink away the night.”

“Most likely…” With a sigh, you surveyed the area, determining which parts were safe and which weren’t. 

'Fucking hell.' There were so many people here. 

In all honesty, you hadn't expected this many to show up for Ace. Maybe he truly was popular, something that hadn't even occurred to you before. 

Perhaps that was because you'd grown up with a little brat, one who had a penchant for driving people away. 

Apparently, that had changed... 

It made you sad, to say the least. Was Ace the same person he was before or had he become someone completely new?

You shook the thoughts from your head and focused back on your friend.

As the students grew closer to you, you suddenly felt nervous at the mass of writhing bodies. 

So many hormonal college students with an abundance of bad decisions whirling away in their booze addled minds. 

Oh, the things that would happen... 

Tonight was a night of partying--it was a night for dancing the worries away and forgetting the stresses of school--and possibly hooking up with a stranger... not that you were going to. 

Swallowing heavily, you shuffled away from a couple of students grinding away at each other, pulling Chopper further into the building as you scoured for your group of friends.

Knowing their habits, all you needed to do was follow the scent of chaos that seemed to linger behind them. Normally, finding them wasn’t difficult, but considering that this was Ace’s party with Ace’s friends, chaos was all around, making it almost impossible to find them amongst the hundreds of students attending. 

With a defeated sigh, Chopper dragged you over to a corner, taking a deep breath as he organized his jumbled thoughts. 

“Since we can’t find them, why don’t we just try to enjoy this? It’s a party, afterall.” You trailed off as your negative thoughts got the better of you. 

Normally, you wouldn't be nervous about something as trivial as dancing, but since you were surrounded by strangers, you didn't quite feel the confidence you usually did when you were around your friends.

And let's not mention the fact that your dancing was horrible. What would you do if someone started laughing at you? That was the one thing you didn't want. 

Pinching the side of your arm, you shook the thoughts away. Chopper was the nervous one here. There didn't need to be another one. 

With a huff, you proclaimed, ‘I’m here to have a good fucking time.’

A second later, you wilted into Chopper’s side, muttering, “Let’s find Luffy…”

He giggled at your chaotic moods before looking over the dancing bodies again.

“Right, well, let’s forget about Zoro for now. Our priority is to find our friends.” 

You nodded energetically at his statement. With your friends around, you were bound to have a good time. 

“Okay, let me see what I can do.” Chopper lifted his nose to the air and began sniffing. 

You tilted your head at him, scrutinizing his actions.

“Uhh, Chopper, what the hell are you trying to do?” 

“Trying to sniff out Luffy.”

“Like a hound dog?” You laughed at his oddness.

“Since birth, I’ve always had a really keen nose, making it easy for me to distinguish certain smells.”

“Really? That could certainly come in handy.” You looped your arm around Chopper and followed his line of sight as he peered around the mass of bodies. 

“He should smell like meat.” You knew Chopper was well aware of this, but it didn’t hurt to remind him, just in case. 

The longer your friend began scouring the group, the more attention you were drawing to the two of you. 

Maybe that wasn't the best idea, after all. 

You heard, “What the hell is he doing?”

“What the fuck, that’s so creepy--,” From the other dancers. 

One withering glare from you seemed to shut them up. 

Once the two of you started getting more odd stares from the other party-goers, you opted to drag your brunette away and switch to a different tactic. 

"Chopper!" You called out, "Let's go to another room!"

Just as you were about to leave, you suddenly felt a hand wrap around your forearm, immediately sending you into a state of panic. 

“Chopper! Y/n! I didn’t expect to see you here!” A man screamed into your ear. 

A blonde head bobbed into your line of sight, a large smile following soon after.

Upon realizing who it was, you reciprocated the massive grin, slinging your hand around his waist to draw him closer. 

“Sabo!” You exclaimed, relief flooding your system as soon as you met another familiar face. 

Another girl popped up next to the blonde, giving you a small wave as you unlatched yourself from your friend. 

“And Koala! It’s been so long since we’ve seen each other!” You gasped as you looked her over, “You look amazing!” 

“Thank you, Y/n.” Koala glanced over at Chopper and smiled at him as well. 

Sabo threw his arm around his neck and pitched you forward, squishing his cheek into yours as his girlfriend smiled affectionately at the reunion between the two of you. 

As your brunette friend and Sabo’s girlfriend were making small talk, you glanced up at the blonde, peeling his arm from your shoulders. 

“Fashionably late, aren’t you?” The male next to you lifted his brows as he examined your outfit, “--and looking quite different, might I add.”

“A good different, I assume?” 

“Of course,” He gave you a wide smile and a wink as he added, “I’m sure you’ll get someone's blood rushing with that outfit of yours. Better be careful, especially in places like this.” 

“If I can survive someone like Luffy, I can take on anyone.”

Sabo threw his head back and laughed as he nodded in agreement. 

“No doubt about that." Sabo walked back to his girlfriend and nodded his head at you. "I take it you're looking for your friends, yes?"

You bobbed your head in affirmation. 

"No worries. I know exactly where they are." Sabo shot you another wink before pulling away from you.

As soon as Koala and Chopper finished conversing, Sabo began to pull the four of you to a different room, leading you through a series of winding halls to get to another section of the mansion. 

“There's a reason why you couldn't find Luffy."

"A reason?" You cocked your head to the side in confusion. 

"They’re out partying in the other end of the house, which, might I add, is far more rowdier than this half.” Sabo explained. 

You swallowed the lump in your throat. 

Worse than here? Well, with Luffy and the crew around, you expected nothing less than a chaotic mess. 

As an additional word of advice, the blonde added, “Oh, and, while you’re here, you’d do well to avoid a certain red-head. Wouldn’t want another run in with him, would you?” Sabo gestured towards a different room as you passed by. 

Your blood froze in your veins are you reimagined your encounter with Eustass. That was something you defintiley wanted to avoid, especially if you wanted to have a good time. 

“Kid’s here?” You whispered lowly, glancing around warily for any sign of him. 

‘Fucking hell--’ You raked a hand through your hair, pushing away the bangs to grant yourself a wider view of the area. 

“Wait, Eustass Kid?” Chopper clutched Sabo’s overcoat, hiding behind him as he creeped around the room. 

The four of you simultaneously shivered as you imagined Kid's smoldering glare. If looks could kill, his certainly would...

Not wanting to run into him, the group quickly made for the next room, zipping past the drunken students and into another mass of writing bodies. 

When you thought you were safe from his area, the four of you let out a sigh of relief. As soon as you recuperated, you looked around the room in awe. 

Chandeliers, vines, candles, and booze--so much booze. 

You felt like you were in castle.

This part of the mansion was on another level. The lights were practically blinding and the music was so loud you could barely hear your friends. 

It was... exciting.

You were immediately roped back into the craziness of the party, forgetting about your worries over the loud music and the flashing lights. 

It felt invigorating, like you could forget who you were for the night and dance your heart out to the music. Not to mention the fact that they seemed to be playing your favorite song.

Sabo yanked at your arm and screamed into your ear, “Luffy’s over there!”

“What?” You hollered back. 

“Luffy--Fuck it!” 

He looped his arms around the four of you before tumbling past the dancing bodies, stopping right in front of the Mugiwara’s booth. 

"Guys!" Sabo yelled over the music, gesturing to them with his arms to catch their attention. 

Upon seeing you, they immediately brightened, their large smiles growing even larger. 

“Y/n!” 

Sanji practically fainted in his spot once he’d caught a glimpse of you, blood gushing from his nose at your dramatic change. 

"Ero-cook." Your swordsman friend grunted as he took another swig of his alcoholic beverage. 

"What the fuck--" You whirled on him, pointing an accusatory finger as he intentionally averted his eyes.

Zoro, who’d magically appeared by them, was downing an entire canister of sake before burping loudly, turning his head to offer you a small nod. 

"Oh, Y/n."

"Don't 'oh, Y/n', me! You abandoned us!"

"Yeah, Zoro!" Chopper cried out, clinging onto the marimo as he cried into his sleeve. The swordsman immediately recoiled, shoving his friend off of him as he returned to his drinking. 

"I thought you guys were with me." The mint-head sighed. 

"So you got lost..."

"Look, let bygones be bygones. Here, I'm even willing to part my sake with you."

Begrudgingly, you accepted his offer and grabbed a shot of his alcohol, downing it in one go. 

"Phew!" You cringed as the spicy liquid ran a trail of fire down your throat. 

Franky and Usopp were already far too wasted to even comprehend what was happening, much less notice your presence. 

"Usopp!" Chopper detached himself from Zoro and ran over to his friend, joining them in their merry dance. 

"Y/n!" 

Your attention shifted from your brunette friend to your ginger one, your smile growing when you saw them.

"Nami! Robin!"

Robin and Nami’s eyes widened. 

“Fuck, Y/n. I knew the dress was going to look good on you,” Nami gasped, her hand covering her mouth, “but, hot damn, I didn’t think it would look this good!” 

She pulled you into the booth, forcing you to sit between her and a very intoxicated Zoro as she coddled you. 

“You look very nice, Y/n.” Robin offered you a close-eyed smile as she patted you lightly on the shoulder. 

“Thank you, but the two of you look even better.” You gushed, gesturing to their outfits. 

There was no doubt that they looked good. Almost every single look that came their way testified to that.

“You’re as beautiful as a well cooked steak.” You giggled, throwing your head back in laughter when Robin quirked a brow at you. 

Nami, on the other hand, was far less amused. She smacked you in the head as she berated you, a vein bulging on her forehead at your odd compliment. 

“Can’t you compliment normally for once? I don’t need another person comparing me to meat.”

"You mean Luffy?" You chuckled. 

Nami pinched your cheek, "Can you just act less like him for once?"

"Fine, fine!" You swatted at the invading hand, rubbing at your sore cheek as you pouted at her. 

Robin laughed at the bickering between the two of you, her cheeks growing warm at the sight of her friends enjoying their time. 

“Only Luffy would take meat as the highest form of flattery.” Nami grumbled. 

Honestly, you didn’t see the problem here. If steak was the best compliment you could receive, why was Nami mad at you? 

“In any case,” The ginger jerked you to her bosom, affectionately rubbing your head as she cried out, “I’m so glad you came! I was worried you’d be cooped up in the room playing your little games!”

Truth be told, you would have rather stayed in your dorm, curled up on your bed with a pint of ice cream rather than dance around at a party. 

But... that was not to be. 

Still, there was some small part of you that was enjoying this. It felt, oddly exciting, for some reason. Maybe it was because you felt absolutely ravishing in this outfit or maybe it was because you were thrilled to see what would happen in the upcoming hours. Knowing the Mugiwara’s, anything could happen while they were there. 

As you were idly chatting with the two women beside you, you didn’t even notice the lanky body catapulting from the other side of the room, crashing straight into Zoro. 

"Oi--"

The man’s drink exploded all over him, completely drenching his outfit in sake.

"For fucks sake." The mint-head grabbed the boy by the head and lifted him up, growling menacingly into his grinning face. 

“Shishishi, sorry, Zoro!” Luffy brushed himself off before whooping loudly to a group of rag-tags behind him. 

"Luffy, I swear to--" Zoro was interrupted halfway when someone began yelling his way. 

"Hey, grab him!" A man with a black eye scowled to his friends, thrusting a broken bottle Luffy's way. 

The band of troublemakers came after your carefree friend, a few of them holding up broken tableware as they dashed after him. 

Upon seeing you, the first thing Luffy did was crow loudly in delight. The second thing he did was yank you out of your booth and haul you with him. 

To be honest, you weren't much bothered by the fact that the both of you were now being chased by a group of maniacs. You were more delighted by your friends apperance. 

“Luffy!” You cried out in delight, wrapping your arms around his scrawny neck. 

“Y/n! Where were you! I got so bored of waiting for you that I--”

“Decided to get yourself into some trouble?” You laughed.

You knew exactly what he was thinking. 

The boy’s excitement was infectious and it was starting to rub onto you. 

You didn’t have anything to worry about, right? Tonight was a night of relaxing and partying the negative thoughts away!

That said, you couldn’t quite relax at the moment, not when you had a horde of angry, drunken strangers chasing after your friend. 

“Luffy!” You called again, “Why are they after you?”

The boy shrugged nonchalantly as he continued to drag you away. “Well, I ate some of their food and apparently, they didn’t like that!" He pouted, "And when they tried to take the meat away from me, I punched one of their friends. Simple as that.”

“Sounds about right.” You grinned over at your friend. “So, what are we going to do about them?” 

“What do you think?” Luffy wrapped his hand around yours and pitched you to the mass of dancing students, hiding you from the drunken student’s searching eyes. “We’re going to lose them!” He laughed loudly as he plowed through the group. 

As soon as the group passed by the two of you, the ravenette tugged on you again, quickly maneuvering through the party-goers to get to a more crowded part of the mansion. 

As you ran through the crowded halls and into a new space, the first thing you heard was an attender screaming, “A word from the host!”

The next thing you noticed was a very intoxicated, very handsome--wait--

Both you and Luffy looked up at the booming voice, confused by sudden interruption. 

All eyes were focused and whoever had caused the disruption. 

A boy climbed onto a nearby counter, drunkenly lifting a cup of alcohol in his hand as he flashed a large, blinding smile. 

You'd recognize those freckles and that smile anywhere... 

Upon realizing who it was, the muscles in your legs decided to seize up, causing you to freeze up in your spot. 

‘Ace?!’ 

It came to no surprise that he was here. It was, afterall, _his_ party. Yet, you hadn’t anticipated that you would run into him this early... 

As he smiled at the group, you couldn’t help the way your eyes would rove over his body. 

This was certainly a change from his usual shorts and tank top. 

A cacophony of butterflies burst in your stomach the longer you looked at him, sending a wave of tingling excitement through your nerves. 

Sure, he was acting like his usual, cocky self, but there was something about a booze enhanced personality that was quite… fascinating. 

It wasn't as charming as his normal one, but it was far more interesting. This was going to be one chaotic night... 

The more you thought about it, the more you realized that it wasn't his appearance that was tickling you the wrong way. It wasn’t his thin shirt that left nothing to the imagination or the black slacks that gave you a good look at his well toned thighs, no, it was the goofy smile and the dark waves that framed his sharp, gleaming eyes. 

You inhaled sharply and clutched at the hem of your dress, attempting to get a hold of yourself. 

“I would just like to say,” Ace hiccuped, precariously tottering on the edge of the counter as he spoke, “I want to say…” 

“Yeah?” Someone shouted back, eager to hear his response. 

“I would like--” The man threw back his drink and tossed the cup away, “--to say…” 

He teetered on the counter before crashing into a table of food, going straight to sleep while covered in various substances. 

Ten seconds later, the table collapsed under his weight, sending bits of food flying every which way. 

The group of students around him stepped back, gasping at his narcoleptic state. 

“Oh my--Is he okay?”

“Do we need to call someone?”

Marco appeared around the corner and hopped over the table, reassuring them that he was okay before tossing them wary smiles.

What the hell just happened? 

Marco began lightly slapping his friends face to get him to wake up. When he did, his blonde friend smiled in relief. 

A moment later, Ace stood up, shaking the food from his clothes before beaming to the crowd again, flashing them an apologetic smile as he sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. 

The boy crouched by a nearby woman, using her dress to wipe the condiments from his face. She stumbled back and gasped, clearly shocked by his sudden actions.

"Forgive me, I didn't mean to surprise you." Ace charmingly held her hand as he smiled innocently at her. 

Of course she'd be surprised. He used her dress as a fucking napkin... That said, the woman seemed to be more flattered by his words than shocked by his weirdness. 

You sighed in defeat. If you were her, you would have sent him flying into the next dimension. 

As you were distracted by the scene before you, you hadn't even noticed your friend bouncing up and down besides you, attempting to get the attention of his brother. 

“Oh, Ace!” Luffy jumped up, waving furiously at the other ravenette. 

You yanked at your friend, pulling him down as soon as his brother glanced your way. 

'Safe!' You huffed out in relief. 

“Ace!” Luffy broke through your hold no less than three seconds later, bounding up again to get his brother to look his way.

Why was he doing this to you? Was this some sort of punishment? 

You knew--you just knew that if Ace saw you, he'd try to do something to embarrass you. What he considered to be fun was what you considered to be hell. 

That said, you couldn't exactly stop your energetic friend from bringing his brother over. He was, after all, far stronger and far more determined than you. When he had his mind set to something, there was nothing you could do to change it. 

When Luffy hopped up again, his brother finally caught sight of him, tossing him a large smile to acknowledge his presence. Not a minute later, his eyes finally settled onto yours, growing wider at the sight of you.

He sucked in a sharp breath as the world seemed to stop all at once. 

At once, his smile formed into a shit-eating grin.

“Fuck--” You hastily dropped down on your knees, not even realizing that Luffy’s foot had caught into yours, sending the two of you toppling over the other.

Ace's eyes broadened when they landed on the duo, unadulterated jealousy boiling his blood as soon as he realized what his brother was doing. 

"Luffy!" 


	17. The Bet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Buongiorno, I feel like I could have written this better. :/  
> The list of songs I'm recommending is the same as before. :D  
> Feel free to listen to them as you read this. :)

The first thing you felt was not the floor, but a pair of soft, yet slightly chapped lips pressing into yours. 

It wasn't the worst sensation, but it was far from the best... 

You weren’t all that surprised by the fact that someone was kissing you, but by the murderous glare that you seemed to be receiving from another person. 

‘Crap…’

You were drowning in humiliation. 

Every single eye was looking down at you as the whispers grew louder in tensity. 

That was your second kiss… and it had been taken by Luffy, again...

A shiver rolled down your spine as you attempted to wrap your head around the situation. What had happened? What was going on? And why the hell did you taste steak?

There was a slight meaty aftertaste as your friend pulled away, a dumbfounded look on his face as he stared down at you. 

Oh, that explained why.

You blinked up at him, completely flabbergasted at what had happened. 

“Again?” You stammered out, shell-shocked. 

At this point, a few of the partygoers had gotten distracted and turned to look at you, further fueling your embarrassment at the odd situation. It didn’t help that you tripped and accidentally latched lips with your friend, but by the fact that Ace was blowing things way out of proportion seemed to do it for you. 

“Luffy!” The freckled boy growled, aggressively strutting over to the two of you.

Luffy’s head whipped over to his brother, causing him to lose his balance again, which ultimately ended with him falling on you once more. Thankfully, before you could relive a repeat of the incident, a hand shot out and pressed against your lips, stopping the two of you from connecting once more. 

You pushed the eldest ravenette’s hand away, wiping the residual saliva on the back of your hand as you shot him a glare. 

‘What just happened?’

Ace grabbed Luffy by the scruff, lifting him to face level before returning a tight-lipped smile. 

You smelled death in the air and something akin to… fire? 

“Tell me,” The ravenette drawled, his eyes closed as he continued to grin at his brother, “What the hell are you doing?” 

Luffy averted his eyes from the scathing glare, a droplet of sweat rolling down his temple when the other ravenette asked, “And what does ‘again’ mean?”

Now it was your turn to start freaking out.

Similarly to Luffy, you avoided eye contact with the older brother as he turned his sharp eyes your way, expecting an answer from the two of you. 

“There’s a perfectly logical reason for that…” You trailed off. 

“Yeah!” Luffy snapped his fingers, “It was like when we kissed as kids!”

You choked on a globulet of spit, hacking into your arm as you attempted to recover from the shock. 

‘Luffy, you nimwit!’ You curled into a fetal position as you willed your body to disintegrate. 

Ace, who was much less amused by this situation, merely glared at the two of you, his brow twitching in annoyance at your lack of explanation. “Kissed? Now when exactly did that happen?”

When exactly did his brother kiss you and why hadn't he known this? 

When he refocused on you, you shuffled back and offered a shaky laugh. 

“Let’s be rational here, Ace.” You held your hands up, “What he means, is that he had to perform CPR on me when I nearly drowned. Right, Luffy?” You raised your brows at him, giving him a look that seemed to say, ‘Back me up, bro’. 

Luffy smiled back at you before going serious, his eyes closing as he calmly stated, “Hide a tree in a forest, hide a ship in ships.”

You passed out next to your friend, unwilling to open your eyes to witness his impending doom. 

What the hell was that even supposed to mean? Was he trying to be philosophical to get himself out of this situation? It didn’t even make sense!

“Sometimes his genius is… is almost frightening.” You coughed out, tossing the eldest ravenette a nervous smile, “but there you heard it, wise words from a wise man.”

“Luffy,” Ace knocked his brother in the head, “Try not to think too hard, you might give yourself an aneurysm. And you--” A shit-eating smirk appeared on his face as he took in your bewildered visage. “Were you trying to hide from me again?” 

“Absolutely not. Who do you think I am?” You coughed suspiciously into your arm, your eyes looking everywhere but at him. 

With a quiet ‘hmm’, he released his brother before kneeling next to you, a large grin on his face as he redirected his attention to you. “We’ll talk more about this later, won’t we?” 

“Yes sir.” You answered curtly, receiving a salacious grin from him. 

“Now, I have a few things to attend to before I can get back to you. Try not to run away or I might have to chase you.” 

Not soon after, a woman with green hair creeped up on the eldest ravenette, wrapping her arm around his bicep as she offered the two of you a warm smile. 

“Who are they?” She asked as she gestured towards Luffy, who was currently wrapped up around you. 

“Oh, Monet,” Ace disinterestedly began to fiddle with something as he nonchalantly mentioned that Luffy was his brother. Although, he seemed to be a little more vague when it came to you--not that that was something you caught onto. 

“I see, well,” She extended her hand to you, “I’m Ace’s friend, Monet! We became friends when we were abroad. And, might I add, you two are positively adorable and quite hilarious!” 

“I’m Y/n and this is Luffy.” You gave her a light handshake before reeling your arm back.

Adorable? Hilarious? What part of this did she find adorable or hilarious? Maybe she’s one of Ace’s weirder friends…

_'I honestly wouldn't be that surprised.'_

Luffy, on the other hand, had no intention of greeting her back. Instead of giving her his customary grin, he opted to go with a grimace, his eyes narrowing on her as she pulled her hand away. 

You could tell right off the bat that he didn’t like her. Although, you didn’t know the reason why, you were sure as hell not going to act like a bitch to her. Afterall, she hadn’t done anything to warrant such a reaction from you, other than call you cute and funny.

“Well, we have some things to attend to, so…” Monet offered another smile as she exclaimed, “it was nice meeting you!”

You were granted a short reprieve when the ravenette stepped away, a suspicious smirk on his face as he back-stepped into the crowd, leaving you to fend for yourself amidst the forest of eyes. Monet disappeared with him, giving the two of you a wave as she too stepped into the group of dancers. 

‘Who was that?’ You wondered. It wasn’t like you cared who Ace hung out with, but there was something about her that rubbed you the wrong way. If Luffy’s expression was any indication, it was that she was something other than what she appeared to be. 

Putting the incident aside, you decided to leave the area, eager to escape Ace’s watchful gaze. 

Knowing him, he probably had something up his sleeve.

With a sigh, you brushed yourself off, looking around for any openings to escape through. 

Luckily, there were many. 

“Luffy, let’s get out of here while we have the chance. Those other boys have probably gone by now.” 

“Alright! Nami said she’d bring over more meat.” 

As the two of you moved through the crowd, you couldn’t help stopping a few times, dancing to your favorite song while vibing with your friend. Luffy seemed to have no complaints as you dragged him to the center, dancing like a rigid corpse as he giggled at you. 

When the two of you finally made it back to the booth, the both of you were laughing your heads off.

Sweaty and dizzy from all the motion, you slid down in the booth, taking a swig of water from the table to calm your jittery nerves. 

“Y/n?!” Nami exclaimed when she saw you, a frantic look to her eyes as she scanned the area. “Why are you here?” 

You looked at her in confusion, wondering why she was acting that way. 

Were you not supposed to be there or something?

Did something happen while you were gone with Luffy?

“I think you should hide somewhere.” She pushed you under the booth as a pair of dark eyes searched your area. 

“Nami, hey--” 

Those who had remained--mainly Zoro, Franky, and Robin, were quite amused by what was going on. Franky glanced your way and shot you a thumbs up before refocusing on his girlfriend, chatting away with her. Despite Zoro’s indifferent facade, you could tell he was excited to see what would happen. What exactly that was, you didn’t know. All you knew was that it wasn’t going to be good. 

Nami offered Luffy a plate of meat as a distraction as she bent down to talk to you. 

“Nami, what the hell is going on? Did Sanji die or something?” 

“Not exactly, but something on the same level.”

“Somehow, I think death is far more important than what you could be referring to… Anyways, what happened?”

“What do you think?” She quirked her brow to the center of the room, gesturing towards the dancing male in the middle. 

You froze when you saw Ace again. When had he gotten here? More importantly, why was he here? 

“Ace? What about him?”

“What do you think?” Nami discreetly helped you up before pushing you towards a group of gathered partiers. “Who do you think he’s been looking for? Mind you, he hasn’t exactly been quiet about it either.” 

“W-Who?” You asked, your voice shaking in anticipation. 

Nami knocked you in the head as she surveyed for a safe location. 

“You, you fool. Now, let's find a escape so you don't have to go through with... whatever he has planned. You don't want to stay here, do you?"

You shook your head fervently. If anything, you wanted to get the hell outta dodge. There was no telling what he had planned. Not after that stunt he pulled in your class or the time he tackled you outside of the university building. 

You shivered as you recalled the embarrassing moments. He was like a man with a mission--and that mission was to embarrass you at all costs. 

As soon as the two of you reached the mouth of the entrance, you turned back and thanked her, shooting a quick smile as she pushed you forward.

Just when you thought you were safe, you heard a cacophony of gasps and whistles. 

‘Please, please, please. Please let it be someone else…’ 

You swallowed a lump in your throat as you desperately pleaded for mercy. 

They weren't looking at you... were they?

Chuckling nervously, you wondered if everyone’s attention was aimed towards someone else-- someone besides you. 

‘Crap.’

Your joints creaked as you slowly turned to the opposite direction, your eyes widening as soon as they clashed with a pair of darker ones. 

All your worst fears had been confirmed when you found a finger pointed directly at you. 

There was no mistake that it was pointed towards you, seeing as how everyone was distancing themselves from around you. 

‘Sweet mercy,’ You pleaded, closing your eyes as you attempted to will away the situation. 

Ace sweeped back his hair, grinning down at you from where he was perched.

"Found you."

Hopping down from his spot, he strutted towards a table and kicked the materials off of it, making space for himself. 

As soon as he hopped up, he snapped his fingers. “Hit it!” 

With a flourish of his wrist, he leaned down to some of the nearby ladies, offering them a wink as he asked, “Mind if I ask for a skirt? 

He broke into an odd pose as he waited for the music to cue. 

A skirt? Why the hell would he need a skirt and who would be dumb enough to give one to him?

You balked at his reaction, nearly fainting from the oddity of it all. Was this really happening? Was this a drea--nightmare?

“A skirt?” One of the women asked. 

“It’s for a little thing I have planned.” 

One of the girls from the crowd tossed a skirt up at him, to which he gratefully took, pulling it over his shorts and flaunting his new look. A wave of cheers and whistles broke through the silence again. 

Well, apparently someone was dumb enough to comply with him...

“Thank you, ladies.” He winked towards the crowd before smirking over at you, his mahogany eyes settling on your petrified form. “This is for you, Peep.” 

You grew pale as you felt your life slip from your fingers. 

‘Was this the end?’

You frantically searched for Nami, desperate for any kind of escape, but before you could even find her, the music shifted from pop to some sort of Celtic song.

“Now, then,” Ace bent forward and broke into an odd position, loudly exclaiming, “A little something I picked up from abroad. Welcome to the lands of Scotland, where the men wear kilts and dance to their traditional Scottish songs!” 

The loud blaring of bagpipes broke through your daze, forcing you to focus on the horrific scene ahead. 

No sane guy would do all this to embarrass one girl. No, that was Ace alone. 

He was trying to kill you, right? That was the only explanation you could think of. Why would he single you out from the others and force you to watch his mortifyingly cringey dance?

If you thought you were sober before, now you were completely so. This was, in short, one of the most traumatic and sobering experiences of your life and you were sure you wouldn't forget for a good while. 

Honestly, you wanted to run into Kid right now. Being around him, though chaotic, was probably better than this. 

Somehow, Ace was way worse than Luffy. Even breaking your arm was far more preferable to whatever the hell this was. 

Although you wanted to look elsewhere, the imaginary hands holding you to your spot kept your eyes on the boy. 

_This was hell…_

He started dancing to the music, grinning when the men and women around him began filming him as they cheered. 

As embarrassing as this was for you, it seemed that this was just another walk in the park for Ace. In fact, he seemed to be enjoying the expressions he pulled from you, an oddly glee expression on his face. 

When he hopped down the table and began making his way towards you, you fell into the arms of another partygoer, feeling faint all of a sudden.

“Is she dead?”

“Someone call 911! No, wait, don’t do that.”

“Someone, check her pulse!” 

You felt a pair of fingers press into your carotid artery. 

“She doesn’t have a pulse!”

“You idiot, you're pressing into her jugular, not her artery!”

“Oh, my bad.” 

Another pair of hands lifted you up, forcing you to relive the nightmare. 

“Ace--” You warned, slowly backing away from the approaching individual. He tossed his head back and laughed at your death-glare, ignoring it completely as he began wrapping up his dance. 

You had no words… You just wanted to disappear. 

There was no doubt that this was going to be seen all over the internet. You would wake up one day and open your insta to see this horrific incident plastered over every page. 

You grimaced internally at the mental image. 

Would you ever escape from him?

Probably not...

Behind Ace was a gathering crowd. They were shoving others to get a peek at what was happening, but all they got was the toned back of the ravenette. Honestly, you were glad they couldn't see you, because you probably looked like an armadillo judging by the way you were trying to escape into your imaginary shell. 

Swallowing your nervousness, you glanced up at him. 

'Drat...' 

His silhouette cast a shadow on you as he got closer. 

As soon as the song ended and the cheers died down, Ace discarded the skirt and stopped to stare at you smugly, his hands tucked in his pockets as he leaned back. 

When the music shifted from the odd celtic style to a more sultry one, the ravenette suddenly began sensually dancing to you.

You wanted to laugh, but you were sure you were in no condition to do so. 

Ace broke out in a smile when he saw you desperately trying to hold in your laugh. 

This man was giving you whiplash. One moment, he was acting like an idiot and in the next, he was acting like America’s next top model. 

You gave the man a shaky glare as he slowly approached, trying your hardest to repel him. 

When it didn't work, you switched tactics. 

‘Two can play at this game.’ You smirked to yourself. 

That said, you shot him a wink before stepping back into the crowd, slipping through a crack as he watched you disappear. 

' _Ninpo, disappearing jutsu!'_

It would appear that he had not anticipated your quick recovery, judging by the shocked look he seemed to be wearing. 

After that little move he pulled, there was no way you were going to play along with his ridiculous game. 

A moment later, the ravenette's grin seemed to grow wider when he realized what you were doing.

You pushed through the crowds as you made your speedy exit, quietly moving around the drunk dancers. If Ace was anything like his former self, he wouldn't be able to find you that quickly. However, you knew you couldn’t underestimate him. After eight years apart, there was no telling how he might have changed?

These heels were no good to you. In fact, they seemed to give you a disadvantage as you made your way through the crowd. 

As you kicked them off, you found yourself giddly laughing as you sped through the group.

Your heart rate seemed to accelerate and your adrenaline was pumping in veins. 

This was exhilarating.

As soon as you were backed into a dark corner in the room, you knew the jig was up. 

The dark shadow of the ravenette loomed overhead.

You were shocked by his approach, confused as to why you couldn't hear him coming after you. Was he really that quiet? Or was the music so loud that you couldn't hear him over it? 

Regardless, you were now in his clutches. 

His warm hand wrapped around your wrist as he stopped you mid-step, pressing into your back as he purred, “Did I not say that I would chase you if you ran?”

“I may or may not have heard something like that.” You dodged the question. 

You were terrified he could feel your frenzied heartbeat through your thin garment. 

As he leaned over your shoulder, you could smell his heady scent and it was starting to make you woozy. 

'This isn't good.'

Ace's head cocked to the side as he inspected you. 

_As soon as he realized you weren’t going to run, the ravenette took a moment to look you over._

_He froze in his spot as he was taken aback by your appearance._

_When had you changed so much? Where was that snot nosed brat he remembered?_

_He swallowed the lump in his throat._

_Despite running into you earlier, he hadn't even noticed the outfit you were wearing. No doubt it was Nami who had picked it out for you._

_He knew it was probably tight and uncomfortable, but it truly was a sight to see._

_He had to suppress a shiver as his fingers lightly skirted past your waist, trembling as they made their way back to his side._

_Nami really knew what she was doing. Maybe she had picked this outfit out for a reason._

_Ace swallowed the odd feeling in his stomach as he looked down at you._

_'Fuck,'_

_He didn’t like how it made him feel. The fact that there were others eyes peering over at you made him dizzy with… something. You were driving him insane with that look of yours._

_His hand gripped at your waist as he pulled you closer to him._

_Fuck, he didn't want to let you go..._

You gazed up at him in confusion.

What was wrong with him? Did he hit his head or something?

His pupils were so dilated you were afraid that they would cover the entirety of his eye. Not that that would have been bad, of course, just weird to look at. 

“Ace?” You tilted your head up at him. 

The boy regained his normal expression and smirked down at you, his bangs shadowing his eyes as he bent over you. 

“You came.” 

“Of course I did. I got a good deal out of it.”

The ravenette chuckled, his laugh rumbling through your connected bodies. 

The loud pounding of the music and the stroboscopic lights put him in another light.

When had he started looking this good? 

You flushed all of the sudden, aware of how very close you were to him. 

“I thought so.” He leaned in, so all you could hear was the deep baritone of his voice as he asked, “Say, why don’t we dance for a while.”

You lifted your brow at him. 

“And why would I play ball with you after that stunt you pulled?”

Ace smirked as he pulled back, a gleam in his eye as he whispered, “Because I know you can't refuse me.” 

‘What kind of shitty ass answer was that?’ You grimaced up at him, earning yourself a chuckle as he began swaying to the music.

His low cut shirt lifted up when he raised his arms, giving you a good glimpse at the deep V that cut through his abdomen. 

'What the hell,' You glanced away, 'Have a little modesty for crying out loud...'

At the same time, you were feeling quite shameless as you ogled his chest... or more importantly, the necklace that swung around his neck. 

You quite liked the engraving on it. 

Swallowing the lump in your throat, you took the opportunity to look him over as he was distracted. 

You couldn’t help the way your eyes would follow his form as his body roiled at the music. When had he started looking like this? 

More importantly, why was he acting like this? What the hell were you supposed to do? 

You felt completely out of place amidst the other dancers. 

Ace moved to stand behind you as he whispered, “Don’t think for a moment that I’ll forget what occurred between you and Luffy.” He lightly gripped your chin, tilting your face his way. 

“It was a mistake.” You pouted, snapping your head away from him. 

He smiled mischievously before turning away to dance again. 

_'What now?'_

You swallowed heavily as you stood there like a pencil, completely rigid and awkward. 

Noticing your uncomfortableness, Ace stopped and looked you over, a worried look replacing his relaxed one. He then smiled when he realized what he needed to do. 

Almost immediately, he leaned over and began twerking. You stood there shocked, watching as he thrust back like a humpback whale. Mind you, it wasn't one of those sexy twerkings either. It was all back and no butt. 

You burst out in laughter at his odd dancing. Now this was the Ace that you knew. 

The ravenette smiled fondly, glad that he'd been able to make you laugh. 

As he went back to swaying to the music, he drew closer again. His hand was hovering over your back, as if he was unsure whether it would be a good idea to touch or not. 

Instead of going through with it, the ravenette pulled back and placed some distance between the two of you. It was too early to do anything yet...

As you watched him dance, it was like adrenaline being injected right into your bloodstream - not so strong as to freak you out, but just enough to make you slowly sway your hips.

The music, the lights, the boy in front of you--they were making you lose your mind in the rush of it all. 

Not a moment later, you began to gyrate as well, feeling the euphoric high starting to get to you. Ace moved along with you, his body sensually moving to the music as he sidled up next to you. 

This felt right, almost natural, like you were exactly where you were supposed to be. 

When you lifted your eyes to his, you were surprised to catch him staring.

Swallowing heavily, you maintained eye contact, unwilling to give up to him. Always the competitive one... 

He smirked a little as he continued to look down at you, continuing to dance closer to you. 

At this point, you couldn’t even hear the music or feel the other sweaty bodies around as he gazed at you. It was as if you were the only person in his world right now--just the two of you. 

His breath fanned over your face as you got closer, your hands lazily finding its way to the side of his shirt, grasping it to get a hold of yourself. 

“H-Hey, Ace?”

He gave you a deep ‘hmm?’ as he acknowledged you.

“Look, I know we’ve never been the closest, but,” You glanced up at him, your eyes wide and round as you debated whether to ask him this. Why were you so nervous?

After that talk with Nami in the mall, all you wanted to do was make up with Ace. Maybe he truly did want to get closer to you. 

‘Fuck--’ You pinched your arm as you attempted to get a hold of yourself. 

What was going on? Why were you all tingly? What was this jittery feeling you felt in your stomach? 

“Cat got your tongue?” He smirked. 

“Shut up, I’m trying to think.” You shot him a glare. 

You bit your lip and looked away, leaning up to quietly ask him, “Can we start again?”

Ace pulled back, taken aback by your odd question. He certainly hadn’t expected that, that was for sure.

Quickly recovering, he looked you over and grinned. 

“I mean, can we start over and try to be… friends?” 

You shyly looked down at your feet, nervously wringing your wrists as you waited for his response. Would he agree to it or would he rub it in your face?

Ace tried his best, he really did, but he couldn’t help the goofy smile that spread over his features as he took in your shy expression.

He had to stop himself from crumpling over and clutching his heart halfway through. Why was your expression so cute? Who gave you the right to look at him like that? 

“Friends?” Although that wasn’t what he wanted, he could settle with it for now... It was far better than whatever they were now.

In fact, he thought, this could be the first step to mending your friendship--or whatever it was. 

Ace leaned over, his fingers tucking a strand of hair behind your ear as he drawled, “Of course, we can be _friends_. I only ask of two things before we shake on it.”

“Do we really have to shake on it in order to be friends? I’ve never heard of something stupid like that.”

The ravenette threw his head back and laughed before refocusing on you. 

“Of course! Not anyone can be friends with me!”

You crossed your arms and glared up at him, “In that case, I revoke my friendship.”

Ace grabbed your cheeks and squished them together as he frowned down at you. “I reject your rejection!”

You pushed away his hands as you continued to scowl up at him. “Fine, what did you want to ask?” 

“That lanky bastard,” He caged you in his arms, “What’s your relationship with him?” 

You pressed your finger against his chest, giving yourself some distance from the ravenette. 

“You mean Torao?” You thought about it for a moment. 

Could you call yourselves friends? No, you didn’t really talk that often, but acquaintances was also far fetched. 

“I don’t know. I suppose we’re kind of like friends? Why?” You added. 

What on earth did Torao have to do with this?

A great grin spread on Ace’s face as he shook his head, “No reason.”

That was exactly what he wanted to hear and now that he had, he couldn't stop the smile from spreading on his face. This truly was a night to remember. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” You squinted your eyes at him accusingly. 

The man gave your cheek a quick pinch. “It doesn’t mean anything, Peep.”

“You’re always like this.” You pouted, fixing him with a dark look as he chuckled at you. 

“Like what?”

“Evasive.”

“And you aren’t?” He leaned dangerously close to you, his dark eyes gleaming in amusement as he asked, “We both like to keep secrets, don’t we?”

“Whatever… just ask your second question already.” You averted your gaze from his relentless staring, nervous at the look he was giving you. 

“If I agree to be friends, then you’ll have to stop avoiding me.”

“What?” You snapped your gaze to him, shocked. “Avoiding… you?”

“Yes, Peep, avoiding me.” He swept back his hair and shot you a smug wink, “Now that we’re friends, we need to act more friendlier, wouldn’t you say?”

“I’m not avoiding you,” You whispered as an after-thought. “I just don’t know how to deal with you…” 

"And--"

"And?" There was more?

"And, we're going to go out more."

"Really?" You stared at him, unamused. 

"What? Aren't we _friends?"_

_"_ Whatever..." You huffed.

In all honesty, you weren't that bothered by this new development. In fact, you were quite excited about it. What would hanging out with Ace be like? Would it be as chaotic as Luffy or more mellow like Torao?

Satisfied with your response, he began putting some space between the two of you before he spreading his arms. When he was a good distance away, he beckoned you forward, a grin spreading on his face.

You gave him a confused look. 

“Come on.” He tilted his head to you. 

“What are you doing?”

“Just come,” He wrapped his hand around your wrist again, lightly tugging you through the crowd. “There’s something I want to do with you.”

That sounded sus... Did you want anything to do with it? No. Did you have a choice? Probably not. 

“Do with me? What exactly is that?” You asked warily. There was no telling what he was going to do. 

“A game.” His smile was suspiciously wide. 

“That sounds extremely shady.”

“I think you’ll like it.”

“How so?” 

“Well, for one, if you agree to play, I’ll even out our tackle score.”

That certainly piqued your interest. “Go on.” 

You contemplated your decision. He certainly knew how to get you to agree on something. Your tackle score was always something you had wanted to settle and now that he was giving you the opportunity to, could you really refuse?

“Let’s make a little wager. What do you say?”

“A bet for the game? I don’t understand.”

He brought you back to your friends booth before settling into a seat, leaning into it as he gave you a lazy grin. “It’s a competition, Peep. The winner will demand something from the loser and they’ll get to keep their tackle score.”

“So, if I win, I can ask you for something and even out my score? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Ding ding ding,” With that, he fixed you a dark look, his tongue flashing beneath his teeth as he whispered, “And if I win, I can ask you for anything.”

You swallowed heavily as you considered the terms. They seemed fair, in all honesty, but were you willing to make such a wager with him? Was the stupid game worth it?

Noticing your hesitance, the ravenette slyly remarked, “Too scared to play a game with me, Peep?”

You felt your blood boil at his words. Was he mocking you? 

“Hell no!”

There was no way you were going to let him get away with bashing you. You had your reputation to uphold!

“I didn’t think so.” He chuckled, playing with his hat as he watched you deliberate on your answer. 

“So, I’ll take that as a yes?”

You lifted your fist in the air, declaring loudly, “Of course!”

He had you wrapped around his fingers… 


	18. Pool boy

You stared at Ace intensely, refusing to let your eyes off of him for a single second. He had something devious planned for this game and you had yet to find out. 

Luffy sat next to his brother, intently chewing on a piece of meat as he played around with Zoro’s swords, earning himself three flaming knots on his head from the swordsman. Unable to sit next to you, due to a certain ravenette’s disapproval, your friend opted to squat at the end of the table, blowing a loud raspberry in boredom.

Robin, Franky, Sanji, Usopp, and Chopper, on the other hand, were chatting away idly, oblivious to the tension that crackled around the two of you. 

“What game did you have in mind? Poker? 20 questions? Truth or Dare? Or maybe… a drinking game?” You asked.

The ravenette perched his chin on his hand as he gazed intently at you, an amused grin on his face. The boy continued to stare at you as you mulled in your thoughts. 

Whatever it was, it probably wasn't good. 

“No, no, no, and no. I have something far better in mind.”

You quirked a brow at him. What other game was there? I mean, its not like he would whip out monopoly or something in the middle of a party, would he?

Actually, he would be the type of person to do that… 

“What’s this?” Nami slung her arm around you, glancing at the two of you as you continued your staring down the ravenette. 

“Just a battle between two warriors.” You proclaimed proudly.

“More like two idiots.” Nami scoffed as she lifted her glass to her lips, taking a long swig of her drink before placing it down next to you. Glancing over at her beverage, you also decided to take a hit of it, just for good luck. 

“So, the game?” You impatiently asked, tapping your finger against the counter as you waited for his response. 

Ace quite enjoyed dragging this out. It made it more dramatic and it set the atmosphere for what they were about to do.

This was a battle long anticipated--well, to you, at least. 

“You better not chicken out when you see the game.”

“As if.” You glowered. 

“I’m giving you a warning. You can back out if you want.”

“Don’t patronize me.” You narrowed your eyes at him. 

‘ _Any moment now…’_

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” 

With that, he bent down under the table, slowly grabbing whatever it was he was referring to. Both you and Nami swallowed heavily as you waited in anticipation, wondering what it could possibly be. It must have been a minute later when Ace leaned back up, a twinkle in his eye as he lifted what could only be labeled as the worst game to have ever been created. 

It was the one, the only, 

“Hippo Dentist.” Ace slammed the hippo shaped container onto the counter before narrowing his eyes competitively at you. 

You shakily touched the box, not quite believing what you were seeing. 

_‘He wouldn’t…’_

‘Oh, but he would,’ The little devil on your shoulder cackled into your ear. 

“Anything but that.” You gasped. 

Nami glanced between the two of you, a grimace on her face as she attempted to wrap her head around the situation. 

What the hell was this odd interaction? Was it some kind of inside joke she didn’t understand?

“Yes, this.” Ace tormentingly added, a shit-eating smirk stretching his lips. “You know I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play this again.”

“You’re evil.” You hissed back, your fingers curling around the edges of the box to keep him from opening it. The ravenette quickly held the other end, using his brute strength to tear it from your grip. 

“Don’t be unreasonable, Peep Peep.”

You pettily pinched your lips and looked away, purposely avoiding eye contact with the chuckling ravenette. 

‘Why on earth are they treating this like a life or death situation?’ Nami thought as her gaze flickered between the two competitors. 

“Unreasonable? The last time I played this game, I smashed my pinkie and had to get it healed at the hospital.”

“Because of Luffy, not me.”

Luffy glanced up as soon as he heard his name. He lifted his brows in question at his brother. “You called me?” 

“No, just eat your meat.” Ace then refocused his attention on the current conversation, completely ignoring his brother's pleas as he continued to fix you with a mild-glare. 

“Same difference. You were playing the game as well. Not to mention,” You pointed an accusatory finger at him, “After you lost, you decked me with one of those red rubber balls, which ended up giving me a big ass bruise on my back. I had to sleep on my front for the next week! What do you say to that?”

“You deserved that after you threw the game into the tree and made me climb up to get it! I fell off after a squirrel attacked me and broke my leg, which, might I add, is far worse than a broken pinkie!”

“Sore loser.” You snapped back.

“Pervert Peeper.”

“Freckled dick.”

“Wow,” Nami leaned over to the two of you, a fond smile on her face as she watched the interaction, “You bicker like an old married couple.”

“Thank you.” Ace nodded to the ginger, tilting a brow at you as if to say, ‘At least she gets it’. 

“That wasn’t a compliment.” Nami deadpanned. 

“And we’re not an old married couple.” You chirped up defensively. 

“SUPER~ Rejection!” Franky yowled, striking a pose as the ravenette shot him a dark glare. 

“Pop a drink, brother. You’ll need it.” Zoro solemnly gestured towards the irritated male, sliding a pint of beer his way. 

“Were they always like this?” Usopp elbowed Luffy as he nodded to the two individuals staring each other down. "I mean, I've never seen Y/n act like this with anyone else."

Luffy tore a chunk of his meat, slowly chewing it as he thought on it for a moment. “Well, they were always arguing, so,” He tore another piece before continuing, “So, yeah, I suppose they’ve always been like this.”

“Really?” 

“Yup, always.” Sabo plopped down next to his brother, swiping a chicken leg from Luffy’s plate before picking the bone clean. “Honestly, I don’t know what’s going on between them and I don’t really care to find out. None of my business anyway.” He tossed the remnants of the chicken straight into a nearby trash can, proudly exclaiming ‘nice’ as he scoured for another source of food. 

Usopp looked over in your general location. 

‘Odd,’ he thought to himself before completely disregarding the thought. 

“So, what’s it to be?” Ace slung his hand over the arm of his chair, getting himself into a more comfortable position as he languidly crossed his legs.

You grit your teeth before relaxing, quietly proclaiming, “All in.” 

“Shall we decide on the bets first?”

“Ask for anything you want,” You smugly scoffed, “It’s not like you’re going to to win anyways. Prepare to eat dust, freckles.”

“We’ll see about that, won’t we?” 

You clicked your tongue in annoyance. Cocky, as usual. What did you expect?

Still, that didn’t disregard the fact that you were going to win. While Ace was the hotheaded one who didn’t think things through, you were more… actually, you were pretty much the same. On this occasion, though, you were going to take your time and think things thoroughly. Defeat was not an option. 

“I’ll go first,” The ravenette clasped his hands together and leaned forward, “I demand a hundred dollars.”

“I don’t even think I have that much…” You mumbled quietly to yourself. ‘Greedy bastard. I know for a fact he has more money than me.

Actually, maybe he doesn’t…

Considering the fact that he couldn’t bail himself out of jail, maybe he didn't have as much as you originally thought.

Or, maybe he didn’t bail himself out because that would free Torao as well.

You yanked at the roots of your hair in frustration. Of all the things he could have asked, why money?

“My turn,” You pinched your lips and thought about it for a moment. What did you want? There wasn’t much he could provide that you didn’t already have. Maybe some money? Food?

Your lips curled up.

No, you had something better in mind.

“I want you to steal one of Zoro’s swords.”

If you were going to win, you wanted something nice and a katana was something you had your eye on for a good while. What did Zoro need with three swords anyways? Wasn’t two enough? 

Regardless, you weren’t actually going to keep it, after you were given the chance to play with it for a while, you were going to return it to him.

You weren’t evil... 

On the other hand, Ace didn’t think that it was fair of you. 

The ravenette stared at you wide eyed. “That’s quite the demand, wouldn’t you say? I suppose I’ll have to change mine as well. There’s no way in hell I’m walking right into a death trap without asking for something better in exchange.”

You shrugged nonchalantly. It’d be better if he asked for something other than money. Your wallet was a little light of late, because of a certain boy--that boy being Luffy. Honestly, anything was better than money. Hell, you’d even make-out with Ace if he asked. Of course, in order for that to happen, he’d have to ask for something absolutely outrageous for you to even consider it. 

Lifting your drink to your lips, you took a slow sip as you waited for the other to respond. 

“I want you to publicly declare your love to Eustass Kid.”

You choked on your water, coughing and sputtering into your sleeve. Nami scooted away from you as you spewed water like a broken hose right at her. 

“What’s this about Eustass Kid?”

Out of nowhere, Ace’s green-haired friend, Monet appeared, coyly sliding into the booth next to the ravenette as she butted in on the conversation. “I hope you aren’t planning to kill us all.”

Luffy grumbled something under his breath as he left his spot, opting to squat down next to you as he munched on a little snack. The younger ravenette returned to fooling around with Usopp soon after, completely forgetting about the green-haired girl's presence. 

You knew Monet wasn’t dumb enough to not notice Luffy’s disdain towards her, but if she did notice, she made no comment on it... Which was weird, considering that it seemed like she wanted to be friends with Ace’s friends, which would include his brothers as well. 

Sabo quickly apologized to the girl for his brother’s rude actions before knocking some sense into the other ravenette, quietly admonishing him before he began chatting up his girlfriend again. 

“That depends entirely on her,” Ace gestured towards you. 

You shook your head and refocused on the conversation. 

'Entirely on me? What were we talking about again?’ You snapped your fingers when it came back to you, ‘Righttttt. Eustass.’ 

‘Yup, somehow declaring your ‘love’ for Kid was way worse than losing your money.’ You cringed to yourself. 

What on earth was he thinking anyways? Did he want to watch you get killed by that lunatic?

“If I were someone else, I’d think you were trying to kill me. Really? Kid? Hell no.”

“Chickening, Peep?” The ravenette mocked, sending a wave of irritation over you. 

“No! J-Just give me a second. If you get to demand something like that of me, I expect something of equal compensation!” You cleared your throat before declaring, “I want you to jump into the pool from the roof.”

“Wow, that’s bold.” Monet leaned over Ace as she plucked a strawberry from his plate, popping it into her mouth before her cool gaze slid to you. “I mean, isn’t that a two story drop? He could die. He’s not going to agree to something like that. ”

“That’s if he hits the cement instead of the pool. Of course, he’s free to change the demand if he deems it too ‘dangerous’. It depends on you, doesn’t it, Ace?” You lifted your brows smugly at him.

“Clearly you don’t know him too well. He never backs away from a challenge.” Sabo pointed out. 

“Yeah! A drop like that won’t kill him!” Luffy chimed in, thrusting his fist in the air proudly as he pointed to his brother. 

“Is that so?” Monet gave Ace a side-long glance. 

“Upping the stakes, are we?” The ravenette propped his legs on the counter before lifting his hands to the back of his head. “In that case, why don’t I change mine one last time?” He reached into his pocket and unwrapped his favorite lollipop.

Whenever he whipped out that candy, you knew he was either feeling serious or playful. Either way, it wasn’t good for you. 

“Say, if you’re going to make crazy demands, then why don’t I ask for something on the same level.” He placed the lollipop in his mouth and idly swirled on it for a while as he deliberated on his decision. 

This wait was killing you. What was he going to ask of you now? Public humiliation? Torture? Death?

“ _Voglio un bacio,”_ which, in Italian, translated to, ‘I want a kiss’. 

Your face turned several shades of red as his words processed in your mind. 

_‘That crazy bastard.’_

You blew your drink out again, earning yourself a death stare from your other friends. Luffy clutched his stomach and laughed loudly, slapping you hard on the back, which ultimately, left you leaning over the table in pain. 

“Wait, voglia un whatever? What does that mean?” Sabo’s eyes flitted between the two of you. 

“It’s _voglio un bacio_ and it means--”

“It means money! He wants money!” You interrupted the man halfway through, curtly slamming your hand down on the table defensively. 

Ace threw his head back and laughed as he took in your tomato-like appearance, amused by your expression. 

Though his brothers pestered him about it, he refused to answer them, the one thing that you probably appreciated. 

As you glared up at Ace, you asked, “What makes you think I would... _kiss you_.” You hissed that last party quietly so that your other table-mates wouldn’t hear.

Honestly, it really didn’t matter if you whispered it or not, the music was far too loud anyways. It’s not like anyone would understand what you were saying in the first place. 

Kiss? What was going through his mind when he thought of this? This wasn't what friends did. Something was going on here... Did he even understand what he was asking for? That wasn’t something you’d ask just anyone. 

“Kiss? I-I don’t understand.”

“I’m being as clear as I can be, _cara_.” Ace folded his arms over his chest and grinned innocently. 

“Why?”

“You can always always say no.”

“Don’t patronize me---and I’m not chickening out, but can you switch back to the Eustass one?” You averted your eyes. 

“Do you want to declare your undying love for him?”

And end up dead? Maybe not… 

“On second thought, maybe I’ll stick with your current one.” 

“Bet.” Ace rolled his lollipop to the other side of his cheek before he popped it out, pointing it straight at you while saying, “Well then, if we have no other issues, how about we start the game?”

Monet’s eyes narrowed on the two of you.

‘What kind of relationship did they have anyways?' She mused. 

The ravenette unboxed the game and set it in the middle, shifting the mouth so it was faced your way. 

“Ladies first.” 

“I see no ladies here.” You looked around before smiling back at him. 

“Shame, I get first dibs then.” He glanced between the 12 teeth and picked the innermost won, grinning when the maw didn’t immediately snap down on his fingers. 

Your stubbornness was going to cost you one day… 

You deliberated on which one you would pick. Realistically speaking, the first few ones weren’t all that risky, but you knew, the more you pressed, the higher the chance of picking the wrong one would be. 

You opted for one of the outer fangs, sagging in relief when it didn’t slam over. 

Tensions were high as the two of you continued to press down on the teeth, and, if you were being honest, it didn’t look like you were the only one who was being affected by the stiff tension that seemed to have clouded the atmosphere. Zoro was guzzling down those beers a little faster than usual and Luffy had completely forgotten about his meat, his attention now solely focused on the game. Sanji was....well, he was still passed out and Nami was leaning heavily over you, intently focused on your next move. 

This really wasn't helping your deteriorating mental state either... 

When you were on the last five teeth, you really began panicking. Was defeat inevitable? Was there nothing but darkness on the horizon? 

‘No, don’t think like that.’ You shook the thought from your head. 

You could beat him. Defeat wasn’t certain. You still had a chance. 

Shaking heavily, you pressed down on one of the teeth, visibly sagging in relief when it wasn’t the ‘one’. Nami, Luffy, and Sabo also sighed, all completely tense as Ace breezily pressed one. 

How was he not freaking out?

Was he not afraid of losing?

You sweatdropped when you chose another one, hesitantly squeezing your eyes shut when you slammed down on it. You were far too afraid to see what had happened. 

Popping a single eye open, you were relieved to see that, once again, you had defied fate. 

“I wonder how long this lucky streak will last.” Ace rapped his fingers against the table as he gazed at you, a lazy look in his eye as he winked back. 

“I could say the same about you. Prepare to taste bitter defeat.”

“Or sweet victory,” He languidly pressed on another tooth, leaving you to choose between the last two. 

Now that you were in the final leg of the competition, you knew you couldn't just randomly press whatever your gut was telling you. This was a 50/50 chance.

'Either I choose the right one and revel in sweet, sweet glory, or I choose the wrong one and… yeah…' 

You swallowed heavily as you thought about it. Was it the right one or the left one?

Maybe your friend has some insight on it. 

“Luffy,” You leaned over to your friend, “What do you think?” 

He wrapped his arm around your neck and leaned over your shoulder to get a better look at the game. 

“Ah, no cheating.” Ace clucked his tongue. 

“Fuck,” You shot Luffy an apologetic look as he unraveled from you, disappointedly slinking back next to his blonde brother before chewing on a piece of meat. 

“The final countdown,” Ace sang as your hand hovered over one of the teeth. 

“The final breakdown,” You sang back, receiving a chuckle from the ravenette. 

It’s the left one, right? It _felt_ like the right one, no pun intended. 

‘Trust your gut. Do what Luffy would do.’ 

Before you were about to press it, Ace snatched your wrist and wagged his finger at you. “You sure about that?” 

“More than sure.” You huffed, now sure that the left one was the correct one. 

Why would he attempt to stop you if you were on the wrong one? No, the left one was definitely the 'one'. 

You confidently pressed down on the tooth, shooting the ravenette a smug grin when nothing happened. 

“Congratulations, Peep--”

Time stopped. 

Your heart skipped a beat. 

A cacophony of gasps erupted around you. 

The jaw snapped shut on your finger. 

“You played yourself.” Ace smugly added as he popped the game up again, allowing you to pull your hand out. 

Did you just lose? No, you couldn’t have…

What would you do now? Would you have to lock lips with this dude?

“No.” You muttered, your brain working on overdrive to comprehend the situation. 

“Oh, yes.” The ravenette shoulders shook as he cackled like a witch, clutching his stomach when you whined out pathetically. 

You internally mourned for yourself.

“Wait, wait, what does that mean?” Luffy cluelessly looked between the two of you. 

“Doom, Luffy, doom.” Sabo lamented, patting his brother on the back empathetically. “Bid goodbye to Y/n.” 

“You guys are blowing this out of proportion. It’s probably not a big deal.” Zoro added, chuckling when you shot him a glare. 

“Wait, where are you going?” Monet piped up, her hand curling around Ace’s wrist as he prepared to leave. 

“Just around the corner.” He vaguely stated, a grin on his face as he looked down at her. 

The green-haired girl shut her mouth at his no-nonsense smile. She knew she wouldn’t be getting much more out of him.

Ace stood up from his spot and extended his hand to you. “My lady.”

“Don’t my lady me.” You grumbled out as you also lifted from your seat. 

You nervously pushed your chair back in, nearly tripping when your knees caved in. Luffy, in the nick of time, caught you as you wobbled back, preventing you from creating an even bigger scene in front of the group. 

You thanked him before adjusting yourself again, hesitantly making your way to the eldest ravenette. 

“Y/n,” Ace’s eyes softened when he took in your nervous demeanor. 

He had suggested that last demand as a joke, but he was really starting to regret even putting it out there in the first place. 

With a sigh and a small smile, he told you, “You can always back out.” 

Honestly, you knew he didn’t have any intention of going through with it, but damn it, you weren’t going to just walk away. If you couldn’t go through with a bet, were you even being true to your word?

You took the ravenette’s extended arm and shot him a grin, “No, let’s go. I’ll be damned if I don’t see this through!” 

“‘Atta girl,” Ace had to bite the edge of his smile when you agreed to go with him, a vain attempt to keep his creeping grin at bay. 

The ravenette bid the others goodbye as he led you through the winding mansion, stopping in front of a hidden nook in the next room. 

When it was confirmed that you were alone, Ace glanced over, the corners of his lips quirking up as he fought another grin, his eyebrows raised as he took in your irritated expression. 

“What are you looking at?” 

“The decor. What do you think?” He pressed his finger into your forehead, pushing you further into the corner. 

“Ass.” You murmured, unsure of what to do now. 

What now? Were you supposed to actually… smooch him? 

You suppressed a shiver as his fingers brushed against your forearm. 

'Chill out, chill out.'

You let out a slow controlled breath and attempted to loosen your body movements. 

Ace stepped closer, his hand hovering right over your waist as he looked to you for consent. You wordlessly nodded, your hand bunching into his shirt as he slowly pulled you nearer. A devious plan occurred to you as he drew closer, the ends of your lips lifting as you attempted not to laugh. 

You weren't going to let your nervousness get the better of you, especially not with this dude around. 

The ravenette’s hand slipped behind your neck to stabilize your head as his lips moved to yours, his mouth slightly agape. 

You skin tingled at the contact.

'Not good, not good. Abort plan.' Alarm bells blared in your head as you frantically dug your fingers deeper into his shirt, feeling his hot skin burn under yours. 

You saw a flash of silver for a second as his mouth settled near yours. 

‘What the hell was that?’ 

You could feel his breath fan over your face as he moved closer. The boy's hand tenderly drew patterns into your cheek, causing you to flush darkly. 

Could he hear your heartbeat through your shirt?

His lips were now a mere inch away from yours.

This was it. It was going to happen--

Until, his mouth brushed past yours and made its way to your ears.

“Right, I almost forgot.” He bumped his open palm against his face as he pulled back, a massive grin on his face as he looked at your bewildered expression. “ _Friends_ don’t kiss, do they?” His voice was deep, rich, and velvety with a hint of huskiness. 

Although he had the upper hand in this situation, he seemed to be... holding himself back or, at the very least, attempting to. 

He beat you to the fucking punch.

Before you could go through with your prank, he had cut it short with a _prank_ of his own. 

You tossed your head back and laughed, a reaction the other hadn't expected from you. His brow crinkled as he took in your amused expression. 

“Y-You’re a jerk, you know that?” You joked. 

Having noticed your restlessness, the ravenette's confidence grew tenfold. The effect he had on you was intoxicating to him. 

'Fuck, it's been so long since I've seen her. I didn't think it'd be like this...' He reached out for you, his fingers drifting closer to your hair.

He faltered halfway through, deciding not to go through with it as his hand dropped back to his side.

Instead, he pinched your cheek and replied, “I know that very well."

“But, more importantly,” You lightly held his jaw and cracked his mouth open, your fingers gently pressing into his teeth as you looked inside. 

The boy inhaled sharply, his self control nearly snapping. 

“What are you doing--” He asked, his fingers twitching by his side. 

“Is that a tongue piercing?” You exclaimed, immediately pulling your hands back when you realized how close you were to him. 

Clearly, you had no sense of personal space, at least not with him. Not that he minded... 

The ravenette, now realizing what you were referring to, stuck out his tongue and displayed it.

“You just noticed?”

A tongue piercing? Who would have thought someone like him would get something as cool as that. 

“Yeah! I never knew you had one! When did you get it?”

“A couple years ago, I believe? Can’t quite remember. More importantly," The male's lean body hovered over yours as he crooned at you, his voice dropping several octaves when he asked, "This piercing isn't just for looks." 

You flushed at his words, knowing full well what he meant by them. 

Ace unwrapped a new lollipop and popped it into your mouth when you were distracted, giving you a slight smirk when you snapped your mouth shut in surprise. “Now, if you’re done gawking at my piercing, how about get on with that bet?”

“Bet? I thought we were over that?”

“Don’t be absurd,” The ravenette leaned back in the nook, “I plan to uphold your end since I didn’t with mine.”

“Wait--”

Ace plucked his hat from his head and plopped it on yours as a large grin split his face. 

“You can’t be serious? You’re not actually planning to jump from the roof, are you? I was kidding!” You pulled the hat off and shoved it back at him. 

“Are you… concerned for me?” 

The ravenette, once again, placed his hat on you. Only, this time, he made sure to hold it down so that you wouldn’t chuck it back at him. 

“Drop dead.”

“That’s what I thought.” 

And--” You pulled the lollipop out and held it out to him, “I prefer blueberry, not strawberry flavored.”

The boy threw his head back and laughed. “If you aren’t going to finish it, then I’ll take it--”

“No, that’s fine. I’ll finish it even though I don’t like it…” You grumbled. 

The other looked back to you as he began walking out, nodding his head your way as if to ask, 'you coming?'. 

You shook your head and murmured a quick, "Give me a second," before he left. 

You brought your fingers to your cheek, touching the area he had caressed. What was it you were feeling?

You crouched down on the floor, hiding your flaming cheeks in your arms. 

He'd only just returned home and he was already messing up your life.

“I’m such an idiot.” You whispered to yourself. 

You exited as soon as you collected yourself, passing a calm grin to the other when he looked your way. With a subtle nod and a gesture to the front entrance, the two of you began walking back down. 

As soon as the two of you were outside, the ravenette gave you a hearty smile before beginning his ascent up the mansion. 

The other partygoers, noticing him, gawked in complete shock as they watched the insane ravenette climb up to the roof. Once he got up, they began shouting up at him in concern. 

“What is he doing?” 

“Is he insane? Does he have a death wish?”

“Hey, isn’t that Portgas D. Ace? What’s he doing up there?”

“Fuck, I think he’s going to jump!”

“Do a flip!” You bellowed, waving your arms in gesture. 

The other Mugiwaras’ exited the house so that they could join in on the ruckus. Luffy sidled up to you and wrapped his lanky body around yours. Monet followed close behind, her eyes widening when they landed on Ace. 

"He's actually going to do it..." She murmured. 

“Oi, Ace! If you jump, I want to film it!” The eldest brother looked down and flipped him a thumbs up before glancing over to you, a wide smile on his face as he stopped to the edge. 

“Same here,” Sabo took out his phone and positioned it in Ace’s general direction. “I’ll be damned if I don’t record this shit.”

“I can’t look.” Nami groaned, turning into Robin’s shoulder as she covered her eyes. 

“I wish that was the ero-cook instead.” Zoro sighed, mulling in his negative thoughts as the blonde strode up to him, planting a firm punch onto the swordsman head. 

“I heard that.”

“You were supposed to.”

Sanji scoffed indignantly before plodding over to the pool side, catching sight of a trio of beautiful college students. Not much later, he began chasing them, hearts beating in his eyes as he called out to them. 

The Mugiwaras' collectively sighed as they watched their comrade go. Not a single one of them volunteered to retrieve him.

Refocusing on the scene ahead, Sabo hollered, “Well, are you going to jump or not?” 

“Eager much?” The ravenette languidly stretched out like a cat as he prepared himself for the daunting jump.

Honestly, if you were him, you would have probably done the same. Jumping outright was something only a lunatic would do. However, Ace was the type of person to do exactly that.

In other words, he was a lunatic. 

The boy kicked his shoes off and stepped on the ledge, peering down at the abyss below before taking a deep breath and plunging over the side. He dove into the water headfirst, hitting it with a loud thud as he disappeared beneath the depths. 

You swallowed heavily as your group of friends scrambled to the side. Luffy and Sabo were understandably concerned, even if they didn’t show it. 

You knew there was nothing to be worried about. Why should you?

Not more than ten seconds later, you were also on the ledge, anxiously searching the water for any sign of life.

Damn it, when did I become this soft?

"Call an ambulance, call an ambulance--" When the boy sprung up, sputtering and shaking out his dark locks, you sighed in relief, "but not for me!" The ravenette threw his fists in the air as the partygoers erupted in cheers. 

“Are you okay!”

“Fucking hell, bro!” 

A group of other party goers jumped into the water and rushed towards him as they screamed out in excitement and concern. 

"That was fucking awesome!"

"Did you record that?"

As soon as he'd made the jump, other boys were beginning to copy him. It seemed that his reckless actions were making them jealous. Understandably so... The girls seemed to be attracted to him, more now than before. Sure, he was objectively attractive and he had a charismatic personality, but the reckless side of him was the nail in the coffin. In their eyes, that made him perfect. The girls, in short, were completely smitten with him. 

You slid a hand over your face and chuckled. What the hell? Why were you even worried? He had others fussing over him.

Of course he wasn’t going to die by something as lame as this. 

As the ravenette waddled up to the shallow end of the pool, you were given a good glimpse of his torso.

Sure, he liked to go out shirtless, which was just fine. It never seemed to bother or affect you in any way, but hot damn, there was something different about him now. Maybe it was the way his thin dress shirt clung to his form or the way he pushed back his dripping locks from his face--or maybe it was the way his onyx eyes found yours. 

His damp shirt pressed into his skin, completely showing off his body to anyone watching. Nothing was left to the imagination. Abs, you got it. Pectorals, it was there. The thirst in the air, definitely there. 

You glanced over at some of the girls, watching as they practically drooled over him. 

'Trust me, he's not that appealing.' You cringed, turning your gaze away from them. 

You were distracted by the splashing that seemed to be getting closer to you and the glaring eyes of the girls you had just been observing. Why were they looking your way, weren't they just checking Ace out?

'Ohhh.' It suddenly hit you. 

It's because the man was, quite literally, making a beeline straight for you. Its like had hadn't even noticed the others around him. 

Ace walked over to your end of the pool and heaved himself up so that his face was a mere foot from yours. 

“Your hat?” You pulled it off and attempted to return it, only to have it pushed back in your chest as a cool, damp hand wrapped around your own. 

“The waters are going to ruin the leather. Hold onto it for now. I trust you’ll keep it safe.”

You hesitantly placed it back on your head as a mumbled a quiet, “Fine.”

“So,” The ravenette leaned on the edge of the pool, idly creating small whirlpools as he stared up at you, “What did you think?”

“That was ballsy, dickles.” You wrapped your hand around his beaded necklace and pulled him forward. “Real ballsy, but I’m not going to forget that shitty prank you pulled on me.”

“Oh? And what are you going to do about it?” The piercing flashed beneath his teeth as he spoke. 

You quickly composed yourself as a slew of 'interesting' thoughts flew around in your head. 

“This.” You looked over to Luffy and nodded. Heaving in a deep breath, you shouted, “Luffy, Ace’s drowning!”

The ravenette snapped his head your way and responded almost immediately, charging straight towards his brother and hopping onto him just as you moved out of the way. 

“Y/n--” The ravenette’s words were muffled by the water as he bubbled under the surface.

You made a speedy escape, running past your group of friends and grabbing Nami as you exclaimed, “Let Sabo handle the rest!”

With a whoop, you watched as Ace's hand pointed your way.

"I'll get you for this!" He shouted before he was, once again, tackled by his brother. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is the last one for the party.  
> Phew.


	19. The Raid

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I took longer than expected to submit this, but I was swamped with homework and exams.  
> Finally, this party is over with! :D
> 
> Ya'll, I apologize if this chapter was poorly written.

You turned a corner and stopped abruptly, scratching your head in confusion as you stared at the scene before you. It was as if this place was purposefully made to cause a person to lose their sense of direction… or maybe that was just you. Maybe you were just as directionally challenged as Zoro. 

Spotting a minibar just ahead, you pulled Nami aside and slid down the booth, heaving out a heavy sigh as you recollected yourself. 

At least this was better than wandering around aimlessly. Now you had a place where you could sit down and take the time to recollect yourself. After tonight, you were in no mood to be getting any more disturbing 'surprises'.

“Mind explaining why you dragged me over, Y/n?--And nearly tore my arm off in the process?” Your ginger friend lifted you by the collar of your dress as she pulled you closer. 

“My bad.” You sheepishly rubbed the back of your neck as she released you, plopping down into a stool right beside yours. “I just wanted to get away from the crowd for a little while.”

Your ginger friend raked a hand through her unkempt curls as she sighed out. “You mean Ace, don’t you?" She folded her arms across her chest and leaned back. "I get it thought, he can be a handful sometimes.”

You propped your arms over the counter and laid your head on them as you gazed up at your friend. “That’s the thing,” You shrugged, “I came here to have a good time, not to get myself into questionable situations. I swear, one of these days, I’m going to die of a heart attack.” 

“On the contrary, it looked like you were having a pretty good time." The ginger laughed. "If not, then explain that.” She pointed at your flushed cheeks. 

Perhaps the aftereffects of the previous event hadn't worn off yet... 

“It's hot in here.” You defended yourself, defensively lifting your hands to cover your cheeks. 

“Right...” Your friend leaned in suggestively as she began poking at the hat on your head, coyly asking, “Well, if you aren't going to explain what happened earlier, then at least spill how you came across this.”

You lifted your eyes to the orange hat. 

“I’m holding onto it temporarily,” You coughed into your arm, purposely giving yourself a reason to turn away from her intense stare, “The water would have ruined the leather.”

“Oh, come on, Y/n. You can’t just leave it at that! What happened! I mean, you didn’t pull me aside for no reason, did you?”

“Actually, I did exactly that. Can you really blame me for wanting to get away from _all that_ ? And, just for your information, nothing happened between us. I mean, _nothing._ Literally, nothing.” 

"Why do I have a hard time believing that?" She fiddled with the strap under the hat.

The thought of his sharp, mahogany eyes staring at you briefly flashed through your mind as you were reminded of what went down a few minutes ago.

You bashfully covered your tinted cheeks with your hands and maneuvered your body away from your friend, preventing her wandering eyes from finding yours. 

What did you have to hide anyways? It wasn't like anything happened and yet, it felt as if he'd done something explicit to you. 

Why were you acting like this anyways? It was humiliating... 

“Oh, whatever. Why do I bother anyways?” Your friend leaned away and sighed in defeat, a sour expression twisting her face.

You knew better than to believe that she had given up.

As it was, nothing she could say or do now would change your mind on the matter. That said, even if you were less inclined to spill now, it didn’t mean she didn’t have opportunities to pry it from you in the future. 

‘Patience is a virtue, afterall.’ 

“Well, if you aren’t going to spill and if we aren’t returning to the group, we might as well have some fun.” 

Nami scanned the unattended bar before reaching over the side, feeling around for an available bottle. When she caught onto the edge of a smooth surface, she wrapped her fingers around the base and pulled it out, a wide grin splitting her face.

The bottle was untouched.

The woman gleefully held up the unopened bottle of brandy, brandishing it before you as she popped the top. “Safer to drink an opened one. You never know if someone tampered with the others.”

“The more you know.” You accepted the bottle when your friend handed it to you, tossing it back and swallowing several mouthfuls to dull the embarrassment that still surged through your veins. 

“Now, why don’t we have some fun?” Nami grasped your hand tentatively and pulled you to the dance floor, a large smile plastered on her face as she began gyrating to the music. With a grin to match her own, you followed suit, but not before grabbing the bottle from the counter before sashaying to her side.

You held the bottle high and felt yourself get lost in the vibrations of the music. The bodies, the warm, the buzz of the alcohol felt nice. It allowed you to temporarily escape the ravenette's face that would occasionally appear in your mind. 

You really couldn't escape from him, could you? 

Within minutes of stepping onto the dance floor, the two of you were suddenly assaulted by a pack of intoxicated students. One of the jocks, whom you assumed to be the leader, strolled up to your friend and slung his massive arm around her shoulders. The ginger’s eyes flared up with barely concealed anger. 

“Hey there, cutie. I don’t think I’ve seen you at one of these parties before.” 

“That’s because I avoid brutes like you. Besides, I’m taken. So, if you will.” She began shooing him off. 

Much to her dismay, he seemed to hold tighter, a wolfish grin replacing his easy-going smile as he scooted closer. “I quite like feisty women like you.” 

Another one of the goons broke away from the group and walked up to you, shoving his mouth to your ear as he mumbled something incoherent. 

His breath reeked of alcohol. 

You scrunched your nose and glanced away, inadvertently offending him.

"Bitch," He mumbled, immediately dropping the nice boy act. He gripped your jaw tightly and forced your eyes to meet his. 

Glancing over at your friend, you began sweating when the other men began surrounding her. What the hell were you supposed to do? 

You hesitantly glanced around, looking for any opening to escape through. 

“Look, learn to read the atmosphere, you dumb fucks.” Nami hissed under her breath, “We’re not interested in whatever scheme you have for us, so fuck off before you regret it.”

“What she said.” You growled back, puffing out your chest to appear slightly more intimidating. 

The boy in front of you, clearly not taking the hint, had decided to wrap his pudgy fingers around your wrist--a weak attempt to drag you away from your friend. 

“Come on, don’t be like that.” The leader pleaded, sarcastically throwing his hands up as a display of surrender, “We know what you’re like. Especially that one.” He jutted a finger your way. 

You sweat-dropped. What could he be referring to?

“From making out with that scrawny ass boy, Luffy, to warming up with Portgas, you’re no better than some of the skanks on the streets. So, why don’t you drop the innocent act and come play with us?”

“And let’s not forget Nami here. She’s known for tossing it around to anyone who flaunts even a bit of cash.”

Your heart, once a steady rhythm, was now galloping in your chest like a war drum.

The kiss with Luffy had been a mistake and you weren’t even all that close with Ace! What gave them the impression that you were… selling your body? 

“Well? Cat got your tongue?”

“Shut the fuck up, before I cut it off,” Nami snarled aggressively, her posture taut as her eyes jumped from one boy to another. She was ready to deliver a blow at the first sign of danger. 

The boy near you turned his glazed gaze your way, dumbly shrugging to his friends. “I don’t think they get it.” 

The leader snickered, “I don’t think they do." He ambled closer to Nami, "What do you think you can do without your male friends, huh? They won’t be able to hear you from here, even if you scream.” 

“F-Fuck you.” You quipped, a quiver in your voice as you snapped back at them. You knew it was pathetic, but it was the best you could muster in a situation like this. 

“‘F-Fuck off’. Did you hear that boys?” The leader jeered at you as his friends laughed. 

There was one thing that Nami or the Mugiwara's, for that matter, did not tolerate and that was slander to one of their friends. 

“Who the fuck cares what you think.” The boy in front of you began tugging at your arm, instantly sending you into fight or flight mode.

Nami’s eyes immediately widened, alert and frightened. Where were they taking you? What were they going to do? Wasn't there anything she could do?

She felt like a cat amongst a pack of wolves. 

You squirmed in his grip, growing more fearful by the minute. 

Fuck, this was pathetic. This wasn’t you, but there was something holding you back--something preventing you from defending yourself.

It suddenly hit you. 

This situation, wasn't it similar to one you had experienced before? 

The cold hand of fear squeezed the breath from your lungs. 

A cross, a gang of boys, and a shiv... 

_Suddenly, you were back in Venice, cowering in an alleyway as you desperately held onto a ornate cross._

_Malnourished, fearful, and freezing to death..._

Your body went limp as you fell to the dance floor, the instinct to fight melting away from you. 

The boy’s grip on your wrist grew harder as he began harshly pulling you away from your friend, leaving you stranded in a sea of strangers. 

Your breath grew haggard as the blood rushed from your brain. Then all at once you face buckled, your breathing stopped momentarily and tears streamed down your face as you watched your friend’s face go gaunt. 

“What the hell--let go of me.” Nami tore her arm from the leader’s grasp and made a desperate lunge for you. Unfortunately, she was held back before she could get to you, her arms suspended in the air as two of the boy’s latched onto her. 

“Y/n!” She cried out, her fingers reaching out to you. 

She needed to get to you--and quick.

All noise went grainy as your ears suddenly decided to fail on you. 

Panic, fear, anxiety, anger--they all seized hold of your senses, leaving you completely vulnerable to this leech. You wanted to yell, to fight back, to do something, but all you could manage to do was quiver in your spot, pathetically allowing yourself to be dragged away. 

This wasn’t supposed to happen. You were supposed to enjoy a night of drinking and dancing with your friends. You were supposed to laugh at Ace’s stupid jokes or endure his torturous pranks. You were supposed to fool around with Luffy and steal Zoro’s katanas. You weren’t supposed to get dragged away by this--this parasite. 

His lecherous fingers began to explore you when suddenly you heard a thud. Looking over to Nami’s general direction, you found the leader lying face-down, his face bloody as your friend’s fist connected with it. 

You felt as if you were the malnourished little twelve year old again… 

Why were you lying on the ground like this? Why were you shaking when you could be fighting back? Why weren’t you more like Nami… or Ace? Why couldn’t you stand up for yourself?

Though you felt the ghostly fingers of the Venician boy’s around your neck and his tantalizing breath on your skin, you also felt the adrenaline of that moment--the moment when you pulled out that shiv and fought for yourself. 

‘I don’t want this…’

Why did you have to sit back and accept this? If you could fight back then, why couldn't you now? Hadn't you been raised by Mihawk? 

You became acutely aware of every sound, every moment, and every breath around you. 

Your fight instinct switched on.

The boy, mistakenly taking your docileness for vulnerability, took the opportunity to leap at you. Only, he realized his mistake as soon as he had done so. 

In that single moment, you did the only thing you could--the only thing you could think off.

Your determination far outweighed the fear that gripped at you. 

“Fuck you,” You spat out.

The adrenaline rushed in your veins as you clenched your fist.

You felt invincible. 

Without thinking, your fist slammed into his jaw, creating a sickening crunch as a tooth popped loose. 

“--What’s happening?--”

“--What the hell?--”

“--Is that Nami?--”

“--Woah--”

“--She punched him!--”

You pushed aside the boy and scrambled up, standing on shaky legs as you attempted to regain your senses. 

When you felt a hand go down on your shoulder, you tensed up, your fists clenching once more. Though the threat was no more, your adrenaline and your fighting instincts were still raring to go.

It had only let up once you heard the familiar cry of your friend. 

“Y/n!” Nami called out in relief, her round eyes softening once they landed on you. “Fucking hell, Y/n. Are you okay?”

You took a moment to register what had happened. 

“I punched him.”

“What?” She breathlessly asked, her eyes flitting to the fallen boy. 

“I fucking punched him.” A smile curved your lips as you glanced up to your friend, feeling a burst of excitement rush through you.

No more was the fear that had once consumed you. No, now you were itching for something more. 

"Of course you did! That jackass deserved it!" The girl pumped her fist in the air, letting the others know who exactly was in charge. 

The other boys scrambled away in fear. They clearly hadn't expected the two of you to fight back, much less beat the living shit out of their leader. 

Could Nami really call herself a Mugiwara if she couldn't handle her own? 

That said, she was still concerned about you. For you to freeze up like that was unexpected and quite frankly, terrifying. 

You were supposed to the brave one--the one that delivered the first blow, but... 

That girl from before, the quivering one, wasn't at all what she expected. 

The ginger's eyes fluttered down to you. 

What happened to you? What were you hiding from her? 

She shook her head and refocused on you. 

She had all the time in the world to think about that later. Right now, you needed her.

Once the high of the fight had gone down, you suddenly felt woozy and out of place. 

“N-Nami.” You placed a quivering hand on her shoulder to stabilize yourself. “B-Booze.”

“Y/n, I think booze is the least of your concern--”

“Please, Nami. I just need it to calm down..."

"I don't think that's how it works." 

She warily handed you the bottle of Brandy, a displeased frown turning her lips as she took in your disheveled appearance. 

‘Something happened to her…’ The ginger thought.

You tossed the bottle back and took a large swig, attempting to wash away the memories of your youth with the strong alcohol. 

You never wanted to experience that again... 

The eyes around you certainly weren’t helping you calm down and neither was the gaze that seemed to be boring holes into your head. 

As the booze was beginning to take its toll, your surroundings were becoming darker and heavier as the music was becoming louder and more sensual.

Now you were finally starting to feel like yourself again. 

You felt good.

You started to sway with the other gyrating bodies, gradually losing yourself to your emotions. 

You didn’t want to think anymore…

Tonight was a night of fun, wasn’t it? It wasn’t a night to dredge up old, traumatic memories. 

You hooked an arm around Nami and swayed with her. 

No, you weren't going to think for the rest of the night. 

Honestly, at this point, you couldn't be bothered by all the eyes that were watching you. You were far too gone to have even noticed them at all. All you could feel was the buzzing alcohol in your veins and the rush of excitement coursing through your body. 

Unbeknownst to you, the students' eyes weren't the only ones watching you. 

______________

_Kid was starting to grow tired of this party._

_Maybe it was time to go..._

_The girls around Kid dispersed when he stood up, whining when they realized he was about to go._

_If it weren't for the alcohol, he probably would have already told them off for annoying them, but as it was, he was in no mood to cause a scene._

_A displeased look curved the red-heads usual scowl as the women pleaded for him to stay._

_“Kid?” Killer also lifted from his spot._

_The red-head pushed the girls away when they clung to him._ _“Nothing. Just stay there. I’m going for a walk.” He unfurled his cloak of feathers and wrapped them around his shoulders as he walked out._

_He had half a mind to bellow down at them._

_His scowl growing grew deeper when he heard a familiar pair of heels follow close behind._

_“Kid~” The girl purred, her voice lowering an octave as she sidled up to him, her lithe arm wrapping around his bicep. “Where are you going? We haven’t even had our fun yet.”_

_“I’m not in the mood.” The man responded curtly, shaking her off as he ambled down the hall in search of booze._

_The girl cocked her head to the side in confusion._ _Clearly, she hadn't gotten the message, seeing as she was continuing to pester him, which only fueled his annoyance._

_When he turned a corner, he suddenly stopped, finding himself face to face with the only person he hadn't wanted to run into._

_Kid growled lowly when he stood toe-to-toe to the grinning ravenette, his mood worsening when the other quipped, “My, my, if it isn’t Kid himself. Decided to come to my party after all?”_

_Ace rolled the lollipop to the other side of his cheek as he idly watched the other, a lazy grin on his face as the hot-headed male growl back at him._

_“Portgas.” The redhead grumbled._

_He wasn't in any mood to be entertaining him._

_“That’s my name.”_

_The girl on his arm glanced between the two of them, confusion etched onto her face as she continued to watch their interaction._

_“Who’s this?” She asked, a feline-like smile splitting her face as she coyly extended her hand to the ravenette. The boy grasped it and gave it a gentle shake as he reciprocated her friendly greeting._

_“No one.” Kid snapped._

_The atmosphere grew darker._

_Though it affected the girl, it seemed to have no effect on the ravenette._

_“Portgas D. Ace, at your service.”_

_“Oh! Portgas? Like the host of this party?”_

_“Ding ding ding.” He smiled down at the girl._

_The pretentious ravenette was really starting to get on the red-head's nerves._

Though he seemed relaxed, Ace knew better than to let his guard down around the other, especially in a place like this--but it didn't seem like he was in any mood to be fighting, which was a relief in itself. 

The ravenette maintained a cold disposition as the other stared him down, the tawny eyes narrowing in suspicion at the others cool demeanor. 

_“Ace!” The ravenette only broke eye contact with the taller individual when he heard a call._

_Turning back, he was surprised to find Monet by his side, panting as she pushed her loose strands away. “There you are. I was looking for you everywhere! Here, you should have this.” She handed him a towel, gesturing to his soaked clothing as she passed it on._

_“How thoughtful of you.” He eagerly took the cloth and began drying his hair with it._

_While the other was busy fixing his appearance, Monet turned towards the red-head and fixed him with a friendly smile. Though she maintained a neutral expression, something inside of her snapped when she saw the girl clinging onto Kid._

_She certainly hadn't expected to see him with someone, especially not a woman. Knowing what he was like, she quickly assumed he was the type to repel them with his brash personality. Apparently, she'd been wrong..._

_“Eustass Kid?” Monet asked, slightly breathless._

_The red-head glanced down at the mint-head, his brow lifting in question._

_Who was she?_

_Tossing a side-long glance to her companion, Monet asked, “Hey, Ace, aren’t you looking for… you know, Y/n?”_

_“Oh,” The boy’s eyes lit up at her name as a devilish smirk curved his lips._

_“About that.” His hand lifted towards the area where his hat would normally be. “I think I’ve annoyed her enough for one day.”_

_He pulled the stick of the lollipop out and discarded it with a flick of his wrist._ _"Besides, I have all the time in the world to play with her some other time."_

_Monet’s brows furrowed as she processed that._

_“In any case, it was nice running into you, troll hair.” The boy tossed the red-head a two-fingered salute as he began sauntering back down the hall._

_Before he could get far, the other roughly seized his arm, forcing him to freeze in his spot._

_“I knew your face was familiar.”_

_“How so?” The ravenette gave off an easy-going expression as he awaited the other’s response._

_Though they were quite popular in the university, they had never met once in their years there. Odd as it may be, neither had a reason to do so… until now, of course._

_“We’ve met before, haven't we? Even I wouldn't forget that snarky attitude."_

_The ravenette shifted in his spot, his dark eyes losing all amusement as the other pressed on._

_What did he know?_

_A manic grin twisted the red-heads face as he stared down the ravenette, his tawny eyes ablaze with amusement, “That's right!" He leered over the other as he whiserped, "It was back at Dracule’s estate, wasn't it--"_

_"Fire fist.”_ _The red-head made sure to enunciate the last part._

_Ace tensed up at the mention of his nickname, his friendly facade crumbling in an instant--instantly replaced with a dark look. “How did you come by that name?”_

_“I know you aren’t a fucking moron, Portgas. You know who I am and how I found it.” Kid released the other’s arm. “I won’t ask why you’re here, only that you know your place while you remain here.”_

_“I don’t go by that name anymore.” The ravenette glowered, his bangs obscuring his eyes as he lowered his head._

_“Oh?”_

_“I don’t know how you found that name or why you know it, but I’m not here to stir up trouble. Although,” Ace glanced up, a dark glint in his eye as he whispered, “You’d best not mention that name here. For your sake and mine.”_

_Kid’s smirk lowered when he heard that._

_It was clear that the ravenette hadn’t included that last part out of spite or of hatred. It was a warning. What for, the redhead knew not._

_“Is that so?” Kid stepped back to allow passage for the other._

_The atmosphere crackled with tension._

_The girls seemed unnerved as the two stared each other down, neither willing to back off until the other did._

_Monet and Kid’s female friend squirmed in discomfort, clearly alarmed by the situation._

_When the air became unbearable, the girl by Kid's side squealed, breaking the spell instantly._

_Ace closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose to disperse the building headache._

_“If that’s all, I’ll take my leave.” The ravenette curtly dismissed the others as he made down the hall, his shoulders hunched in obvious stress._

_A wicked grin spread across the red-head's painted lips._

_Oh, how he relished in the feeling of victory, even if it was a petty one._

_Monet looked between the two._

_What was that about?_

_Since they had been discussing in hushed tones, she couldn’t make out what they were saying. What was more unpleasant was the fact that it had gotten Kid into a considerably worse mood._

_What was so serious that they had to discuss it alone?_

_Monet stayed behind even, much to Kid's displeasure._

_What could she possibly want from him now? Had Ace left her behind to further annoy him?_

_His scowl grew deeper as she continued to irritate him with her presence._

_“The fuck do you want?”_

_The girl jumped at his dark tone as she was brought out of her daze. She needed to tread carefully._

_She swallowed heavily before proceeding with her next words._

_With him, one needed to be extra cautious. There was no telling if he'd lash out at a single wrong word._

_The red-head's tawny eyes narrowed._

_Even if she found the courage to speak up, his vast, intimidating aura certainly wasn’t helping her to find the right words._

_When she finally found the determination she needed, the girl glanced up and coyly placed her hand on her hip._

_She just needed to take him as another man..._

_“Can you blame a girl for wanting to introduce herself?” Monet smiled salaciously at him._

_“You’re a friend of Portgas?”_

_“Something of the sort." She drew a line down his chest, "but I’m more curious about you.”_

_Kid’s folded his arms over his chest, stopping her hand from moving down any further. There was something about her that brushed him the wrong way._

_Monet glanced towards the other girl wrapped around Kid and shot her a scathing glare before returning her attention to the male above. “See, I’ve been quite interested in you of late and I’m dying to know more.” The woman seductively pressed herself into the side of the man, revealing an ample amount of her cleavage as she slowly lifted her eyes at him._

_“Say, why don’t we get better acquainted. I’m Monet, if you were wondering.”_

_Before the woman had a chance to continue, the man curtly responded with, “I was not.”_

_The red-head took a moment to examine her. She was certainly beautiful, that much was sure, but she wasn't quite his type. Classy, well-dressed, well-mannered, and well-kept, she was certainly Trafalgar's type, but that didn't stop him from checking her out._

_The woman stared at him, her mouth agape in shock._

_Did she just get rejected?_

_As soon as he finished the conversation, he began walking down the corridor, heading for the nearest room for a drink. He needed something strong to suppress the anger that raged in his system._

_“I’m sure I can entertain you far more than her, Eustass.” The woman called out._

_This was her last ditch effort to gain his attention._

_The red-head disinterestedly turned back, his brow lifted in curiosity. Despite his cool appearance, he was somewhat interested in what she had to say._

_How often did girls who weren’t offset by his intimidating demeanor come by? Not very often, to say the least--and Kid was getting bored of this whining bitch by his side._

_“You’re a tough man to approach, Eustass. I quite like that.” The woman slung a lithe arm over his coat as her other hand searched for an entrance in his clothing._

_“This is my number,” Monet slipped a scribbled paper into his pocket before pulling back with a wink, “Give me a call sometime.”_

_He raised his brows at her obvious attempt to hit him up, but said nothing more, opting to return to his mission of finding the nearest bar of booze._

_“Kid, you can’t seriously be considering her,” The other girl scoffed._

_“And if I said I was?”_

_"Do you think someone like her can't handle someone of your caliber? I didn't think you were into those snobby bitches. Now come on, let's go have some fun." She whined, her fingers pressing into his arm more insistently._

_"And who put it in your head that you can?"_ _The red-head's muscles bunched as he crouched to her level. The girl felt like a child in comparison to the monster that he was._

_How had she not realized that? Had she grown so accustomed to being around him that she'd forgotten what he was truly like?_

_Dread filled her veins the longer she stood there, her eyes glued to the massive figure as he stood back up._

_He could restrain himself when needed, but there were other times where that was impossible. The girl was only thankful that that wasn't one of them._

_"I don't like repeating myself, but it seems that you've forgotten what I said earlier."_ _The woman stared at him wide eyed as his fingers moved to lightly grip her jaw. The slight pressure he added was a warning--a testament to his strength._

_She stared at him wide-eyed, unwilling to break eye contact for fear of angering him further._

_His tangled, wild hair added to his feral, roguish look, something that had birthed a seed of fear into her stomach. Somehow, he was far more terrifying when he was calm than when he was yelling._

_“I said I wasn’t in the mood,” He crowded her into a wall as he took in her whimpering form, his voice a rich baritone as he growled, “So fuck off.”_

_This man was a wild beast in the form of man, she thought._

_The woman quickly fled the area, clutching at her chest as she ran. Not once had she spared another look at him as she disappeared around the corner, probably out of fear of incurring his wrath._

_A loud commotion from one of the rooms brought his attention to it as he continued to wander down the halls. With nothing to do, he decided to seek the source of the scuffle._

_What was the harm anyways?_

_Kid entered and slid into a hidden booth, his tawny eyes scrutinizing the ruckus on the other end of the room._

_‘Oh?’ A grin spread on his face when he caught sight of you. It didn’t last long when another man began to feel you up, causing a torrent of rage to build up in the man._

_Maybe he did have an outlet for his pent up anger..._

_The cup near his hand shattered when he applied force to it, shocking the others around him. As soon as they realized who he was, they fled, terrified of his terrifying visage._

_As much as he wanted to beat the shit out of the man, he had no intention of butting in now. After all, you were more than capable of taking care of it._

_And he was proven right when you delivered a nasty right-hook to his chin--all but defeating him in one blow._

_The red-head continued to observe the scene, a wild grin stretching his painted lips as he watched you. Your smile--your glee when you had punched him was intoxicating to the red-head._

_Now he knew why he was so interested in you…_

_The man stood up from his spot, gathering the eyes of others around him as he made his presence known._

_"Is that Eustass Kid?"_

_"What's he doing here?"_

_"Fuck, let's get out."_

_Kid strolled up to the fallen man and smiled in delight when his eyes widened in fear._ _“What do we have here?” The red-head crouched down beside him as he asked, “I have a question. Do be honest when I ask.”_

_"Y-Yes."_

_"Good."_

_The man swallowed heavily as the larger individual idly cracked his knuckle._

_"What does 'fuck off' mean to you?"_

_"W-What?" The other man asked cluelessly._

_He received a kick to his mid as soon as he responded._

_"I'm the one asking questions here, dumbass. Now, answer the question before I lose my patience."_

_"I-I don't know."_

_"Oh, you don't know?" The red-head cooed as he lifted the man by his hair, a terrifying grin on his face as he took in his bloody appearance._

_The color of blood was terribly enticing to him, so much so that it awakened a thirst in him he hadn't expected._

_The man weakly croaked something._

_“What was that? I don’t think I heard you quite well.” Kid stood up and pressed the heel of his boot to the man’s face, slowly applying pressure as he awaited the other’s response. The man, in a feeble attempt to protect himself, began clawing at the shoe, crying out when it only dug deeper into his face._

_“Deranged fucks like you make me sick.” Kid continued to grind his boot into the man’s face as he growled out at him. “Hey, are you fucking listening?”_

_"I-I'm sorry." He croaked, tears streaming down his face as the other laughed at him._

_The air of dominance he seemed to exude was stifling the energetic atmosphere._

_Before he could create anymore ruckus, Killer and the rest of the gang plowed through the group, beelining straight for their leader._

_“Kid, don’t do this. You promised you wouldn’t make a scene here.”_

_"Oh, Killer. I was about to have some fun."_

_Killer's gaze dropped to the bloody student. "We can do something about this later, but right now," His eyes flitted over to the multitude of students watching, "Right now, we have too many eyes on us."_

_Kid shot a nasty look to his friend before lifting his foot off the man, tossing a short ‘fuck’ before backing off. There was another time and another place for something like this._

_The red-head clucked his tongue before wiping his sullied hands on his coat._

_Upon realizing that his leader wasn't going to take it any farther, the blonde sighed, gladdened by his sudden decision to back off._

_Kid then lifted the boy by his hair, pulling him to eye level as he snarled, “Be glad I’m in a good mood. Now, fuck off before I change my mind.”_

_Killer and the others deflated in relief as the leader released the boy. However, that relief was short lived when he began scouring the group, his watchful gaze searching for someone._

_A cheshire- like grin lifted his painted lips as he prowled to the back of the room._

_"Oh no," Killer was abruptly interrupted when his other friends caught up to him, their eyes widening at the bloody scene._

_______________

You took another swig of your drink as you continued dancing, dangerously tottering into a nearby couple, which earned you a couple of dirty looks. You didn’t care though. Not anymore. Not right now. The pulsing pain in your knuckles was nothing compared to the phantom fingers that continued to squeeze at your neck. It served as a continuous reminder of who you were--what you were. 

As you drunkenly meandered around the dance floor, you ended up taking a circle back to the minibar, giggling incoherently when your ginger friend watched you disappointedly from afar. Nami sidled up to you as you sloshed your empty bottle around, disappointed that it had gone so fast. 

With a sigh, you discarded the item, opting to lean on your arms as you stared at your friend’s hazy face. 

Suddenly, you weren’t feeling as good as you were. In fact, you felt as if your stomach was attempting to free itself from its fleshy cage. 

“Nami,” You croaked, “I don’t feel so good.”

“Of course not. After you drank that much, I’m surprised you haven’t passed out yet.” Your friend slowly rubbed your back as she searched for the nearest source of water. When she couldn’t find any, she clucked her tongue and stood up. “Shit. Wait right here, Y/n, I’ll find some water.” She shot you an apologetic look before rushing to the next room, frantically searching for an opened bottle she could give to you. 

You placed your cheek on the cool surface of the counter, watching as the various lights glinted off the surface. It was mesmerizing to look at, almost beautiful if it weren’t for the menacing individual standing right behind you. 

You squinted your eyes, unable to distinguish who it was through the haziness of the alcohol. To you, he was just a mass of black, red, and yellow. 

He slipped onto the stool next to you and mumbled something as his gaze leveled with you. No matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t make out what he was saying or who he was, but it was clear he had no intention of hurting you. You were sure of that much. 

Still, the smell of blood did offset you.

Who was he and what did he want? You weren't in the right headspace to be talking to random strangers right now. 

As soon as you briefly closed your eyes to fight off the building headache, you couldn’t fight the sudden onslaught of drowsiness that was overtaking you. Now exhausted from the excitement and the adrenaline, your body was now experiencing the aftereffects of such an event. 

The other individual caught you in time as you fell over, protectively wrapping their arms around you as you slumped into them.

____________

_Killer was alerted to the presence of a deviant figure as soon as the students rushed to the windows, scrambling to get a good look at what was happening. They whispered in hushed tones as the group grew larger._

_Killer glanced through the windows in alarm as he recognized the red and blue flashes of a cop car._

_‘Fuck, I need to get Kid.’ The blonde thought as he rushed through the crowd. This really wasn’t good, especially not for them. They weren’t exactly loved by the law, which made things more complicated when it came to situations like this. If they were caught, there was no telling what would happen._

_In a hurry to get to his leader, Killer pushed the others aside, creating a trail of disaster as he blazed through._

_Once he caught sight of his friend, he pulled him aside--along with the other members of the group._

_“We need to get the hell out of here.” Killer’s gaze drifted down to the girl sleeping in Kid’s arms. “Shit, Kid, why do you have Y/n?” The blonde asked, a hint of panic in his voice as his eyes roved over her still form. What the hell was going on here?_

_You sunk deeper into a state of sleep as the other heaved you on their shoulder, blanketing you under a mound of warm feathers._

_“How the hell should I know?” The red-head readjusted the girl on his shoulder when she began squirming around._

_“Well, shouldn’t we return her to her group?”_

_“You’re free to look for them.” Kid gestured to the group of panicking students, lifting his brow at his friend in amusement when a disappointed frown curved his lips._

_Heat, Wire, and the others appeared soon after, their expressions tight as they assessed the situation._

_“What happened?” Wire clasped the blonde’s shoulder, turning his attention away from the red-head._

_“Someone probably snitched about the use of illegal substances.”_

_“Where’d you hear that from?” Heat inquired._

_“Didn’t hear it from anyone. Saw a room full of faded kids. That was proof enough for me.”_

_“Fucking snitches.” Wire growled._

_“If you’re done asking questions, how about we get a move on. This is the last place we want to be if we want to stay low.”_

_“Don’t get me wrong, that sounds like a great plan, but what the hell are we going to do with her?”_

_All eyes focused on the sleeping girl as she fidgeted around on the red-head’s shoulder._

_“Can’t we just leave her here?” One of the boys suggested with a shrug, immediately earning himself several heated glares from some of the higher ups._

_“I don’t feel comfortable leaving her to fend for herself…” Heat added as an afterthought. The others agreed with him. Leaving any girl alone in a place like this was bad enough, but to leave an frien--acquaintance was worse._

_“Shit, we don’t exactly have time to spare to find the Mugiwara’s either.” Killer clucked his tongue in frustration._

_“Then it’s settled.” The red-head passed his friends, beelining straight for the door._

_“Settled? Nothings been settled, Kid. And where do you plan to take her?” The blonde snapped, quickly following after his leader. The other’s pursued close behind as the group began heading to their collective parking spot._

_“Back to my place.”_

_“To your place?” The group echoed in perfect synch, all of them shocked._

_He hardly if ever brought people back to his home, with the exception of his friends, of course._

_“Fuck, isn’t this kidnapping?” Heat hesitantly asked, his eyes nervously flitting between the other members._

_“We could always just dump her here.” The red-head smirked._

_“Right, straight to your place it is.” The blonde affirmed._

_Kid chuckled as the other’s entered their cars, quickly placing it into gear as they waited for the leader to load the girl into the vehicle._

_“Kid, you gonna take the bike?” One of the men turned back, jutting his finger at the red-head's motorcycle._

_“Not tonight. Have Wire take it back to the shop. I’ll ride with Killer back to my place.”_

_“Alright, boss.” He jogged over to the ravenette, quickly explaining the situation as Kid situated himself into the blonde’s mustang._

_However, before the blonde could leave, he heard several loud bangs on the passenger window. Rolling it down, he asking, “We’re in a bit of a rush, so if you could make it quick--_

_Fuck, who was it now?_

_“Kid!”_

_It was the mint-haired girl from earlier…_

_Killer turned away with a huff, attempting to suppress his annoyance at being blatantly interrupted._

_“Apologies, but--” She leaned into the window as she spoke directly to the red-head, “Would you be willing to take me with you?”_

_Kid narrowed his eyes at her._

_“What a fucking coincidence.”_

_How had she managed to find him twice in a row? Had she been actively keeping tabs on him all night or was it something else?_

_“Pardon?” Monet tilted her head to the red-head._

_“Nothing.” The red-head leaned back in his seat, getting comfortable as he readjusted you so that your were propped up next to him._

_“Kid, we need to go--” Killer had neither the time nor the p_ _atience to deal with another girl, especially one as troublesome as Monet. If the things he heard about her were true, he wanted nothing to do with her._

_Kid lifted his hand to the blonde, silencing him immediately._

_“And your friends?” The red-head asked slowly._

_“You think I’ll be able to find them in this mess?” Monet scoffed._

_With you taking up most the backseat, it was already hard enough to find space for her, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t make room._

_He took a moment to think about it before coming to a quick decision. What was the harm? Plus, he’d be benefiting if he allowed a girl as entertaining as her to join in with him. He was quite interested to see how this would proceed._

_“Fine, get in.” The red-head gestured to the other side of the car before slinging his arm over the headrest._

_Monet stopped when she saw you passed out next to Kid. Why were you there? What business did you have with Kid?_

_A wary smile split the mint-head’s lips as she climbed into the back, situating herself on the opposite end of the unconscious girl._

_‘Clingy bitch.’ She internally grimaced as she observed your grip on the red-head’s cloak._

_“Shit, we need to go now.” The blonde slipped into the driver’s and set the vehicle into motion, peeling out of the driveway as fast as lightning as he merged onto the main road. The other men followed soon after, their engines roaring to life as they drifted next to the blonde._

_As the three were driving in relative silence, Kid took the time to observe your unconscious form. It wasn’t often that he got to see you in such a peaceful state. In fact, he’d never seen it before, something that was quite intriguing to him. It wasn't that he hated your aggressive expression, but there were times when he just appreciated your relaxed form._

_It stirred something in him, to say the least._

The silence was broken when you began whimpering silently in your spot, your body quivering as you felt a pair of cold hands grasp at your neck. 

Kid looked down at you in mild alarm and annoyance as he took in your shaky expression. His irritation was wiped away when he saw a tear roll down your cheek.

“Fuck--” The red-head grumbled.

He had no idea what to do in these kinds of situations. It wasn’t like he could hit you on the back of the head and call it a day, you weren’t one of his men, after all. That said, he wasn’t exactly comfortable touching you either, not after the incident from before. 

“What’s going on back there?” Killer turned his head over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of you whimpering next to Kid. 

“She seems to be experiencing some sort of… nightmare?” Monet commented.

“Killer, do something about it.” Kid growled, slowly pushing you off of him. 

“What the hell do you expect me to do? I’m driving!” 

“I don’t fucking know. Just do something.” The red-head growled, his fingers digging into the cushion to prevent himself from lashing out at the bratty blonde. 

“Or, you can just leave her alone for now. I’m sure it’ll subside over time.” Monet shrugged nonchalantly. 

“You could also comfort her. Just a thought.” The blonde shot the mint-head a look before refocusing on the road. 

Monet wasn’t oblivious to the contempt the other seemed to hold for her, but there wasn't much she could do about it. 

“Comfort? Who the fuck do you think I am?” The red-head grasped at the blonde’s headrest, pulling himself forward so he could talk face-to-face with the other. 

“The only person capable of comforting her right now.” Killer kept his gaze straight on the highway as he drove through the darkness. 

“You’re fucking joking. Do I look like a fucking therapist to you?” He tossed a glance towards his friend.

Killer wouldn't have suggested it to him if he didn't think he was capable of it. Although Kid was blunt and oftentimes rude, he was quite caring to those he held dear. Though they mainly composed of the gang members, Killer knew he had a certain soft-spot for you. 

“Look, I’m not going to fight you on something as dumb as this, but it’s up to you on whether or not you decide to help her.” 

"Fucking hell," The red-head grumbled, his expression was unreadable as he looked away.

‘What could he possibly be thinking about?’ Monet wondered curiously.

She didn't think he was capable of making such an... expressive face. 

There was no way in hell he was going to be caught ‘comforting’ you, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t do something about it--And there was no way in hell he was going to put up with your crying the entire drive. It was bound to drive him insane at some point. 

The red-head discreetly covered the top half of your body with his coat as his fingers hesitantly rested atop your head. 

'What the fuck am I doing...' 

_As his fingers gently rubbed at the back of your head, you instantly relaxed, your body growing lax at the familiar touch._

_Despite his rough touch, you felt at ease at his ministrations._

_Somehow, it felt similar to how Mihawk would rub your head comfortingly when you were going through a fit. As a child, you’d often make yourself comfortable at the foot of the swordsman chair, your head leaning against the plush velvet of the cushion as the man silently patted the top of your head._

_It felt nice..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I love Monet as a character, so it was kind of hard for me to make her 'that girl', but it had to be done. Also, Happy Valentine's day. :D


	20. The Night Before Disaster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't think this chapter would be so long. D:

Kid kicked open his door and strolled in, dumping his keys into a nearby jar as he made for the couch. He plopped down the instant he kicked his boots off, relaxing into the soft cushions as the others strolled in.

Today had not been his day. From running into Portgas to beating the shit out of some lowlife, he seemed to be getting the short end of the stick lately, and that was all because of a certain someone. In fact, that person was with him right now. 

Killer carried you in as Monet followed close behind. Fortunately, the others had gone home after they had gotten a good distance away from the mansion, bidding their leader goodbye before going their own way. Killer, on the other hand, opted to stay so he could drop you at the red-heads house. He had made the vague excuse that his place wasn’t 'big enough' for another girl, especially one as rowdy as you. Not to mention the fact that the Mugiwara’s were probably looking for you, which was more trouble he didn't want to avoid if he could.

The red-head had no choice, so he begrudgingly accepted. Plus, on the bright side, he had another reason to keep you here, so he wasn’t all that against it.

That didn’t account for the other girl who had followed along though. The red-head thought that once they were a good distance away from the party, she’d just leave on her own accord, but it seemed that she had a plan of her own. 

As soon as Killer walked into the room, he tilted his head to his leader and asked, “Where do you want me to put her?” 

Kid flourished his hand towards the couch, as if it were the most obvious answer. 

“Just leave her on the couch. I don’t want her making a mess elsewhere.” 

The blonde wordlessly laid her on her side, so as to prevent her from choking on her own vomit. He then scoured the place for a bucket and laid it out in front of the couch. 

As the other was busy fussing over you, the red-head took the opportunity to look over at the other guest. 

“Why are you still here?” Kid’s narrow eyes traveled over to the mint-head.

“Oh, I thought that maybe I’d be allowed to stay for the night...”

“Does this look like a hotel to you?” The red-head reached over to his coffee stand and plucked a cigarette from it, promptly placing it between his lips as he lit it. “It isn't, so fuck off. I already have enough trouble as is.” He gestured over to you as he blew out a puff of smoke.

“Come on, Kid. Don’t be like that.” The girl sidestepped Killer and made her way to the red-head, climbing into his lap as she pressed her lips to the shell of his ear. “I promise I’ll make it up to you.” 

Honestly, there weren't many girls who were brave enough to pursue Kid, so Killer had to commend her on that, even if he didn't necessarily like her.

She had balls, that was for sure. 

“Do you think that’s enough to persuade me?” He roughly grabbed the back of her neck as he pulled her forward, his face a mere inch from hers, “I really don’t think you know me all too well." He blew a ring of smoke into her face, "I don’t take demands from anyone.”

“Oh, but I do.” The girl’s manicured fingers dug into his cheek as she licked a strip over his ear. “And I’m more than eager to show you.” 

Killer cringed from the second hand embarrassment, cluelessly scratching the back of his neck as he awkwardly stood in the middle of the living room. What was a guy supposed to do in a situation like this? He knew he could trust Kid to take care of you, but he didn’t exactly feel the same about Monet. Was it really a good idea to leave?

...And yet, there was no way he was going to spend the night here. He wanted nothing to do with his friend's affairs.

...Be that as it may, he couldn’t just leave you here with them either. 

After a moment of deliberation, he caved in.

His need to escape the situation far outweighed his sympathy for you. 

‘Sorry, Y/n.’ He made for the door, quickly slipping into his boots as he opened the entrance. 

“I believe that’s my cue to leave.” Killer took one last glance at your disheveled appearance before cringing slightly when he felt a wave of guilt overcome him. 

‘She’ll probably be fine…’ 

Then the blonde silently closed the door behind him, dashing straight to his car without looking back. 

As soon as he left, the couple relocated to a different room, their lips instantly meeting as their eagerness got the better of them. Monet had already shrugged off the top of her dress as she continued to press into the red-head, her hands roving over his taut muscles as she slowly undressed herself. Kid, on the other hand, allowed the other to take the lead as he sat back, his hands lazily gripping at her ass.

“Kid, I-- Fuck.” His hand wandered down, relentlessly teasing her as she gripped onto him for dear life.

She honestly hadn't expected him to be that good...

Her head went limp on his shoulder as his hand bypassed her underwear. 

“Weren’t you the one begging for this?” He purred into her ear. 

She mumbled something incoherent into his coat as her fingers dug deeper into him. Kid lifted his hand from her nether region to her chin, forcing her glassy eyes to meet his. “What happened to all that talk from before? Was it all bullshit?” He smirked. 

“Shut up and kiss me.” She insistently pressed her lips to his again, opening her mouth to accept his prodding tongue as she delved her fingers into his pants. 

“You’re a pushy one, aren’t you?” 

As their kiss depended, Monet was almost completely nude, her body bare and ready for the other. She slowly trailed her fingers down to his hardened area, her lithe fingers sliding over the fabric to allow some friction to his member. 

The man held her arms over her head, taking command of the kiss as he pushed her down, his large form caging her smaller one. 

As soon as his fingers dipped into her, he heard a loud thud, immediately stopping his ministrations to look over at the source of the sound. 

“Ignore it,” Monet moaned as she tilted his head back her way. “It’s probably nothing anyways.”

She pressed her lips to his neck and slowly trailed down, attempting to distract him from the commotion outside. 

No more than a second later, he stopped himself, his firm grip holding her away from him so that he could explore the sound. 

“Kid, I’m telling you, it’s nothing. Something probably fell over.”

His dark eyes pierced into hers as he calmly answered, “I’ll determine that for myself.” With that, he exited the room, leaving her hot and needy as he closed the door behind him. 

“What the fuck…” She slumped down on the bed, her hand sweeping her hair out of her face as she glanced over to the door. 

  
  


Honestly, the red-head didn't know what to expect when he walked into the main room, but it certainly wasn’t you lying face-first on the floor--And it didn’t help that your form-fitting clothes were accentuating every detail of your body. It didn’t make his case…. easier, to say the least. 

Now that he had the chance, he could take his time checking out your outfit, since he didn't have the opportunity to do so before. He definitely liked what he was seeing.

It wasn't like he was tired of you in your casual wear, but this was a sudden change he wasn't adverse to. 

“Fucking dumbass.” He went over to crouch by your side, assessing whether the fall had damaged you in any way. When he determined that you were okay, he lifted you back onto the couch, dumping you onto a pair of pillows to cushion the fall. You stirred quietly in your sleep, your mouth forming a small ‘o’ as you yawned. 

The man turned around and gripped onto the nearest shelf, his knuckles turning white in an effort to control himself. 

To a normal person, that yawn would have meant nothing, but to Kid, it putting forth certain...devious thoughts in his mind. In fact, it was going on overdrive as he imagined you in various scenarios. 

And the bulge in his pants was doing a great job on distracting himself from what he needed to do. His prior ‘activities’ with a certain mint-head were starting to affect him now. 

Kid glanced over to you warily, his hand hesitantly pushing a loose strand away from your face. 

What the hell was he doing? 

Although you were in a compromising situation, he had no right to be doing this.

Sure, he had self control, but when had that ever stopped him? He was Eustass motherfucking Kid. If he wanted something, he’d get it. Damn the consequences. 

\--but, he didn’t want trouble with the Mugiwara’s, especially when he knew it would get him into hot shit, which was the absolute last thing he wanted right now. 

With that in mind, the male quickly withdrew his hand and looked away, inhaling deeply to gain some semblance of self control again. 

When he had recovered, he looked back, his eyes growing as wide as saucers when he saw you retching over the couch. 

Honestly, he didn’t know what he expected, but it wasn’t a vomit stained carpet in front of him. 

The motion from the quick switch in position had set your stomach ablaze as the alcohol suddenly burst forth from your innards. 

“What the fuck--” The man hopped away in time, a terrifying scowl on his face as he glared down at you. “Fucking hell.” 

You groaned weakly as you lay limp on the couch. 

“If you weren’t unconscious, I’d have killed you by now.” 

Yelling would do him no good, but at the same time, he couldn’t just let you get away with this. It wasn’t like he wanted you here in the first place.

With a sigh, the large red-head stepped back, attempting to assess the situation.

One, he could leave you here to stew in your own vomit, or, two, he could kick you out of his house, which… neither were an option right now. 

He glanced down at your pitiful form, a large scowl on his face as he gave in. 

Kid tentatively picked you up, slowly walking to his bedroom as he made his way to his bathroom. He unceremoniously threw you into his tub, cringing when you dry heaved again. What would he gain from helping you? Nothing...

Still, he couldn't just leave you to soak in your own vomit--it would end up negatively affecting him. Plus, he didn't want his placing smelling like puke the next day.

He plucked the shower head and aimed it at you, a cruel smile on his lips as he began hosing you down till you were devoid of filth. 

You woke up, half-conscious and sputtering.

“W-What’s going on--” You spat out the remnant water in your mouth. 

The red-head aimed the head straight at you again, spraying you until you fell back unconscious. It wasn’t like you were fully conscious in the first place, so he had no reason to feel bad about it. Not like he was going to feel bad in the first place. You were the one who vomited on his carpet after-all…

\--and he was going to make sure you’d pay for it. 

Now that you were vomit-free, Kid felt comfortable enough to hoist you back onto his shoulders and into his bedroom. The man went over to his dresser and scoured for an available shirt, pulling out the smallest one he could find. It had been a tattered one he hadn’t worn in a long time, so he wasn’t all that hesitant to give it to you. In fact, the right term would have been ‘eager’. It wasn’t everyday that he got to see you wearing one of his shirts. 

Truth be told… there was no way in hell Kid was passing up this opportunity. You wearing his shirt? Hell yeah.

“Portgas would fucking hate it.” He chuckled darkly, a gleam in his eye as he walked back into the bathroom, chucking the article of clothing your way. 

He would change you, but he had a feeling that it would be better if someone else did. So, he stepped back into the next room, gesturing for Monet to come his way. 

“You kept me waiting...” The mint-head trailed her manicured fingers over his chest.

“And you’ll continue to wait. I need you to do something for me.”

Monet blinked up at him in confusion. “What would that be?”

“Help scooter--Y/n change.”

Monet narrowed her eyes. “What makes you think I’ll agree to that?”

“Because you’re in my fucking house. Do I need to remind you that I ‘graciously’ let you stay here.” He pinned her to the wall and whispered, “When I could just kick you out.” 

“I see,” She stepped away from him, a smile on her face, “Understandable." 

“Just fucking do it.” He growled back before strolling out of the room, leaving the mint-head dumbfounded as she stared back. 

She shook her head and chuckled, slowly making her way to his bedroom. It hadn’t been her plan to initially stay here, but she was much too curious to let the opportunity pass. She hadn’t, however, predicted that you’d stay here, or rather, be allowed to stay here on Kid’s command. 

It was far too interesting to leave now.

Monet stepped into the bedroom and sighed, watching as you shivered in the tub. Your hair was a mess and your makeup was starting to seep into your clothes, ruining its once glamorous appearance. 

“What am I to do…” She quickly stripped you of your clothes and shoved you inside of the large shirt. 

Once she was done, she stepped back, taking in your new appearance as she called in the hot-headed redhead. 

"There, I did it. Happy?" She skirted past the door to stop right in front of the man, her hand flat against his chest. "You really are a fickle one, aren't you?"

Despite the fact that the mood from before had all but evaporated, Monet wasn't all that turned off by the new development. She had opportunities in the future to spend time with the red-head after-all. What was one loss?

Her eyes wandered down to the member hiding discreetly beneath the folds of his clothes. “I would offer to take care of it, but,” She lifted her eyes again, assessing the cold ones that were staring right back, “I think you’ve lost the mood for it. In any case, I can tell when I’m not wanted.” 

The man wordlessly moved past her, going over to lean against his dresser. 

“Well, I suppose it’s my time to leave. A girl knows when she’s not needed.” Monet quickly shimmied into her coat and picked up her belongings. “I still expect that phone call though. I’m sure I haven’t diminished your interest, which is enough to satisfy me for now.” 

Kid glanced back at her as she slipped through the front entrance, a cat-like grin on her face as she left. 

Once the door closed, the male slumped down in his spot, his hand wandering towards the crotchal region of his pants. He pressed down on it with a groan, suppressing his urge to satisfy his needs. 

Not tonight, not right now. 

Thankfully, before his self-restraint snapped, a phone call interrupted. 

He lifted the device to his ear, hardly noticing the slip of paper that wandered down from his pocket as he withdrew it. 

“The fuck do you want.” He grumbled, annoyed at the interruption. 

“Is that any way to address your friend?” Killer laughed on the other end. 

“I don’t give a fuck. Why’d you call me?”

“Now, now, don’t be so defensive. I called because I was worried for Y/n. I thought you might have accidentally… killed her.”

The red-head went quiet. 

“You didn’t kill her, right?” The other laughed nervously. 

“Why would I do that.”

“I didn’t think so! Thank goodness. Just wanted to remind you that you need to leave her on her side! It wouldn’t do her any good to choke and die on her own vomit. Oh, and you should probably lay out some Advil for that hangover she’ll get later.”

“Are you her mother? She’ll be fine.” A vein popped on Kid’s forehead. 

“Not everyone has your tolerance, Kid.” 

“Fuck off.” 

“Well, that’s all I called you for. Sorry for taking up your time, Kid.” 

Before he could hang up, the red-head stopped him. He crouched down and picked up the discarded paper on the floor, flipping it over to its backside to find the scribblings of a number. 

“Before you hang up, I have a request.”

“A request from you? That’s unusual.” The other chimed in. 

“Just fucking listen.” His eyes went back to the door as he pocketed the paper. “That girl, Money--”

“It was Monet.”

“Whatever,” Kid cleared his throat, “Find out more about her.”

“That came out of nowhere. What spurred it on?” 

Kid looked down at the number in his hand before neatly folding it up. “Nothing--just my gut telling me something.”

“For sure, I’ll ask Wire to look into it later. Is that all?”

“Yeah, that’s all.”

Killer chuckled on the other end, “If that’s all, then goodnight. Oh, and one more thing.”

Kid barely stopped himself from pressing the red button in time to hear the other ask, “Will you tell her about it someday?”

The red-head’s fists clenched as he was reminded of ‘it’. 

"Why the fucking interest?" 

"No reason. This conversation just reminded me of it..."

“No, there's no reason to."

“I see… Goodnight, Kid.”

The red-head tossed his phone to his nightstand as he glanced over at you, an unusual expression replacing his scowl. 

'Best not to dredge up old memories…’ 

He shrugged off his coat of feathers and draped it over you as he left the room, going over to the next one to take care of the ‘little problem’ in his pants. 

Next to the couch he spotted a bright orange cowboy hat, one he immediately recognized as Portgas's. 

He had half a mind to toss it in the trash, but knew it was better to keep it. 

With reluctance, the red-head picked the hat up and placed it next to the coffee table as he wandered into the room next door. 

_________________

_You were standing in a field of reeds, looking over at the girl shrouded under the shadow of a willow tree._

_“L-Lola.” You weakly called out, hesitantly reaching for her over the reeds._

_It was your friend again, only this time instead of wearing a pale dress, she was garbed in a pale kimono that was littered with spots of black liquid._

_Upon closer inspection, you realized that they were not in fact, spots of black liquid, but blood--dark, red blood. It ran down in streams, starting from the base of her scalp to her neck._

_It was a horrifying sight, to say the least._

_“Y/n, I missed you so much.” She placed her hand over her heart before pressing her soft palms to your face._

_"Lola?"_

_She began smearing the liquid onto you, a deranged smile on her face._

_Rivulets of blood trickled over your eyes, blinding you from her menacing expression._

_“I missed you so, so much, Y/n,” She cupped your cheek tenderly, “But now we can be together, like we always wanted.”_

_“L-Lola, I--” She pressed her finger to your mouth, silencing you almost immediately._

_“I know what you’re going to say.”_

_You didn’t mean to leave--you didn’t want to leave, but it wasn’t like you had a choice._

_“My dear, dear, Y/n. It doesn’t matter that you left me. The only thing that matters is that we’re together again.”_

_Your eyes widened in horror as she moved to embrace you, but instead of warmth, all you felt was the coldness of her touch._

_She smelled strongly of copper and lilies--she smelled of death._

_“But we’re not…” You whispered. “We’re not together, Lola.”_

_Droplets of blood snaked down your hand as you reached for her, small drops tainting the soil as you moved._

_All of sudden, her mood darkened, her once innocent look disappearing all-together._

_“Don’t say such things.” The other girl hissed, her hand whipping out to grip at your throat. “You think I don’t know that we aren’t together? I’m giving you the chance to stay with me--to be with me.”_

_“But I don’t even know where you are. How can we be together if you aren’t physically with me?”_

_“Who said anything about my physical presence?”_

_“Lola--”_

_She silenced you once more. “So, you can’t be with me because they took me away?”_

_You shivered at the thought of those men--the men in the dark clothing who moved under the cover of night to indulge in their sick activities._

_Her grip grew tighter, but you prevailed, harshly whispering, “Yes, Lola, because they took you away. ”_

_The girl's eyes softened when a stream of tears ran down your face._

_If you had the chance to reserve time, you would have, but reality was often cruel..._

_Lola sighed in defeat._ _“I see…” She released her hold on you before leaning in, “Then why don't you try to find me?”_

_“Find you?” You hiccuped._

_What on earth did she mean by that? How would you find her? It had been so long ago, you doubted that there was even a trace of her existence left._

_Sometimes_ _, you even wondered if she really did exist._

_"Find me, Y/n. Find me and learn the truth."_

_All went silent as she stepped back, disappearing into the reeds as she moved away._

_“Lola?” You called out, “What do you mean find you?”_

_You had so many questions for her._

_‘Like, where did she go? Who took her? Was she still--no.’ You shook the thought off._

_This wasn’t the time to be dawdling._

_You frantically stood up and ran into the reeds, running through the endless fields to find her._

_“Lola?! Where are you?!”_

_Where had she gone? You couldn’t have lost her this fast. This was your chance--the chance to find her--to apologize to her._

_You eventually lost your voice as you continued to scream her name, your voice becoming a low rasp the longer you kept up._

_It wasn’t always like this._

_You looked up at the red sky before glancing down at your soiled hands._

_There was blood everywhere._

_You tasted it, you smelled it, you inhaled it, you felt it._

_You attempted to scrub it off on your clothing, but soon realized it was futile. Your panic turned into full blown fear when it wouldn’t wash away._

_“Lola, I’m sorry!”_

_Several cold hands gripped your throat, stopping your incessant cries._

_It was those boys--the boys from Venice._

_They looked down at you with their wicked smiles and laughed._

_Throughout the laughter, all you could hear was, “It’s all your fault that I’m like this…”_

_______________

You abruptly woke up, your body shaking from the previous night's nightmare. 

Your eyes were puffy from the tears. 

“L-Lola?” You curled up in a fetal position as you cried the remnants of your dream away. It would do you no good to be caught like this, especially in a place like this--wait, a place like this? 

Where exactly were you? 

Your panic resurfaced when you glanced down at yourself. You weren’t in your party dress, which concerned you greatly. 

Whose shirt was this? In fact, whose bed was this?

You patted down the area around you for your phone. When you realized it was nowhere to be found, you started freaking out--until you remembered you didn’t even bring it in the first place. 

You then noticed the maroon coat over your body. 

Swallowing down the panic, you calmed yourself enough to assess your current situation. 

"Okay, first things first." You needed to figure out why you were here and who you were here with.

Had you been kidnapped?

You gasped at the thought. 

Looking down at the coat, a sudden thought came to you. 

“This looks like Kid’s…”

Pulling it up to your face, you gave it a quick sniff, almost immediately recognizing the scent. 

It was definitely Kid’s, which was just another concern to your ever growing list of concerns. You could only conclude that this room was his, which meant that you were in his house. 

Why were you wearing his coat and why the hell were you in his place? What had gone down last night? And why did you feel like your head was going to split in half?

You were slightly grateful for the headache, because it meant that you could distract yourself from your dream, even if it was for a short while. 

It wasn’t like you were avoiding it, you just needed a quick reprieve to reorganize yourself. 

Phew--you needed a shower and a toothbrush to get rid of the sour taste in your mouth.

You stood on shaky legs as you made your way to the nearest window. It was an apartment complex, but an unfamiliar one at that. You didn’t even recognize the other places that were around you. How far did Kid live away from the University? Why did he live so far away anyways?

Quickly gathering yourself, you pushed away the coat and stood up, slowly rubbing the film from your eyes as you made your way to the door. 

Did you want to walk out there? 

You hesitantly stopped in front of the door.

Who was on the other side? How would they react to you? 

Honestly, you didn’t feel like walking out looking like this, but it wasn’t like you had a choice in the first place. 

It was time to face the music, whether you wanted to or not. 

When you opened it, you were quite surprised to see the scene that lay ahead. the first thing that caught your eyes was the layout of the place. You hadn’t expected Kid’s house to look the way it did, but it was aesthetically pleasing nonetheless. 

It was a mix of grunge and class. The walls were composed of red brick while the floors were of a dark cement. Each side of the room was lined with a number of guitars, music albums, and the occasional playboy poster--classic. 

You offered a thin-lipped smile as Kid, Killer, and Wire glanced up at you. Their conversation immediately ceased when they saw you stroll out in nothing but a flimsy shirt. 

You unconsciously folded your arms over your chest. 

Now you were really wishing you had worn a bra… 

The blonde choked on his drink, coughing into the sleeve of his shirt as his other friends began laughing.

'Do I really look that bad?' You grimaced. 

Kid merely leaned back against the counter and smirked, his eyes roving over your outfit. He quite liked what he was seeing, which was a rare thing for him to think. 

Sure, girls have worn his shirts before, but it was a different thing with you. 

You would never willingly wear anything of his. In fact, you wouldn’t even associate yourself with him if you had the choice, which was why this was such an interesting opportunity. 

“How do you feel?” Heat chirped up, quickly breaking the awkward silence that settled on the atmosphere. 

“Like absolute shit.” You groaned, weakly rubbing at your temples to stave off the ache of your headache.

What did you do last night? You could barely remember what happened.

“I think this will solve things.” Killer tossed a bottle and a container of pills your way. 

“Thanks.” You tossed the medication down with a mouthful of water. 

It took awhile for it to work, but when it did, you finally felt relaxed to start conversing with the others. 

“So, umm…” You wrung your wrists nervously, offering the others an awkward laugh as you asked, “H-How did I get here?”

Honestly, you shouldn’t have been as nervous as you were, but you felt completely bare before these four men--four large, _intimidating_ men. 

Kid’s odd stare really wasn’t helping you relax either. 

“You really don’t remember?”

“No?”

Killer reassuringly patted your shoulder as he recounted the entire night, telling you all that had happened the previous day. 

Once you heard the whole story, you sat down on the nearest chair, holding your head as you processed the entire thing. 

“I don’t even remember passing out…” 

“I’m not surprised, you were completely intoxicated.” 

“Was I?” You meekly scratched at the back of your head, offering the blonde an embarrassed laugh as he gave you a comforting nod. 

“Don’t worry about it, it’s not a big deal.” Heat chuckled. 

“Kid’s done worse.” 

Wire earned himself a scathing glare when he said that. 

You quickly changed the topic when you asked, “I have another question.” You raised your hand, getting the attention of everyone around. “Where are my clothes?”

Kid’s face scrunched up in disgust as he recalled the previous night's events. 

“I burned them.”

You balked. 

What the fuck did he mean by burned? What were you supposed to do now? Did he seriously expect you to walk around in nothing but a shirt and an underwear? 

“Tell me you’re joking.”

“Would that change things?” He grinned at your deep-set frown. 

“And who’s shirt am I wearing? I mean, I don’t remember changing myself…” 

“It’s mine." He leaned back and smirked, "Trust me, if I had the opportunity to change you... well, you wouldn't be wearing anything." 

You slinked back further into the room, covering your body with your arms as best you could.

“What the hell does that mean?” You poked your finger in his direction. “Wait…” 

What did he mean by that?

You gasped, “Did we… Did we do anything last night?”

Kid grinned at you as he lifted his mug to his lips, taking a long sip as you continued to glare at him. 

“If we did anything, you’d definitely remember it.” 

You averted your eyes away from him, awkwardly scratching the back of your neck as he pinned you down with an amused grin. 

This guy was as bad as Ace! What was with guys and their hidden innuendos? 

\--Actually, his wasn't hidden at all...

“That doesn’t explain who changed me…” 

The red-head clicked his tongue and glanced away. “I don’t get the problem. It’s not that big of a deal.” 

You covered yourself with your arms when you felt conscious about your body again. What the hell was wrong with this dude?

“Of course I have a problem with it! Who wouldn’t be bothered by wearing some random dude’s shirt!”

“Random. Dude.” The red-head grabbed the collar of your shirt and growled. 

You yanked it right back, returning a similar scowl. 

Wire, Heat, and Killer stepped back, conversing with one another as the two of you bickered over the topic of your shirt. 

They really didn't want to have to involve themselves if they had the choice. 

The tall ravenette returned to flipping the pancakes on the stove, scooping the first two out and sliding it onto a plate.

Once the red-head got tired of your squabbling, he picked you up like a child and dropped you onto a nearby stool. You stared at him in shock, your mouth agape. 

“Just shut up and eat your food.” He growled. 

Kid nodded towards Wire, who slid a plate of fresh hot cakes your way. Heat and Killer grabbed their own and dug in, striking up a conversation with their hot-headed leader as you sat there perplexed. 

You glanced down at your food, confused.

That man was giving you serious whiplash. One moment, he's all in your face and yelling, the next, he's playing the flirtatious idiot--much like Ace. 

What was it with them? Were they trying to drive you insane?

“Why?” You asked. 

Killer looked up. “Why what?”

“Why are you doing all this for me?”

“You think I’m doing this for you?” Kid scoffed, shoveling a mouthful of pancakes into his mouth. “I made this because I’m hungry. Don’t think I did it for you.”

You glared at him. 

“Don’t mind him.” Heat plopped down on the stool next to you and passed a container of syrup your way. “‘Sides, I’ve never even seen him voluntarily eat pancakes.”

“I see.” You cut off a square of your food and popped it into your mouth, savoring the sweetness of the syrup and the fluffiness of the cake as you chewed on it.

It was definitely what you needed to get over your hangover--and, surprisingly, so was the company. 

You silently watched as Killer, Heat, Wire, and Kid started conversing with one another. Kid would occasionally raise his fork at his friends, threatening them with death if they continued to push on his buttons. The others merely laughed at his half-assed attempt to intimidate them. With how long they've been with him, they knew better than to believe that. 

They seemed so comfortable and in place with each other, as if they hadn’t a care for the world. 

'So this was what the other side of Kid was like. I mean, it made sense. How could someone be such an asshole all the time… actually, maybe he could.' You pressed your face into your open palm.

As you interacted with the others, you felt your worries and fears of the previous night melt away. 

You knew it wasn't long before your nightmare would come back to haunt you, but for now, you were content with just spending what little time you had with them. 

Though, the pleasantness of it all was about to be cut short when there was a sudden interruption. 

Heat's laughter was interrupted when Killer’s phone buzzed. Not a minute later, Kid, Heat, and Wire’s devices rang as well. 

“The fuck?” The red-head quickly swallowed the remainder of his food before checking his phone. 

**Worst Generation**

**Luffy:** Where the fuck is my friend!

 **Sabo:** Luffy, can’t you have said that nicer?

 **Nami:** No, he’s right. We have no idea where Y/n is. 

**Ace:** That’s right. I want to know where she is. 

**Ace:** Fuck, I can’t believe I left her last night. I blame it on Luffy.

 **Luffy:** HEY! :(

 **Law:** What happened?

 **Ace:** Nothing you need to know, lanky bastard. Just crawl back in your hole and disappear already. 

**Bepo:** Hey, don’t talk to him like that. >:(

 **Law:** Bepo, just ignore the ignorant buffoon. 

**Zoro:** It’s too early in the morning for this… and why are you texting the ‘group chat’. Everyone’s going to know what’s going on. 

**Robin:** Zoro, it’s 11 a.m., and we’re texting everyone because they might have some clue as to the whereabouts of Y/n. 

**Robin:** Realistically speaking, she might have been murdered last night…

 **Ace:** She’s not dying before I do!

 **Usopp:** Robin, stop saying such scary things. T_T

 **Law:** Y/n isn’t with you?

 **Luffy:** No :( She left our group some time last night and we haven’t been able to find her since. 

**Nami:** Fuck, it’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have left to get some water… 

**Nami:** I’m going to kill whoever called the cops.

 **Sanji:** Ahhhh, I love angry Nami so early in the morning! It’s so sexy! 

**Sanji:** But I agree, we need to find Y/n-san first!

 **Luffy:** Sanji, I’m hungry. Cook me some breakfast. 

**Nami:** That’s not important right now, Luffy!

 **Nami:** So, no one here knows where Y/n is?

 **Law:** Has 24 hours passed since her disapperance?

 **Chopper:** T_T Please don't treat this like she's actually been kidnapped. 

**Law:** And what if she was actually kidnapped?

 **Robin:** If so, I wouldn't count on her reappearance. 

**Nami:** Guys, please. Tone down the negativity. 

Killer lifted his brows at his leader. “Do you want to tell them she’s here?” 

“That’s a good idea. We’ll be able to free our hands of her that way.” The red-head kicked his feet up on the table and sipped at his coffee. 

“Love to know that I’m wanted.” 

Kid rolled his eyes at your nonchalant response. 

**Worst Generation**

**Killer:** We have her here. 

**Ace:** … 

**Ace:** What are your demands. 

**Kid:** No, you fucking moron. She just crashed for the night. 

**Nami:** Wait, why was she at your house? 

**Sabo:** Should I be concerned that she’s at Kid’s house? 

**Luffy:** Eh, it’ll be fine. I trust Jaggy!

 **Nami:** Luffy, you idiot. 

**Ace:** Put Y/n on the phone right now. 

**Ace:** Did you do anything to her last night?

 **Ace:** Fuck, I'm going there. 

**Kid:** Can’t, we murdered her. 

**Killer:** Kid, please don’t. You're only going to cause more problems.

 **Sabo:** FUCKING HELL. Luffy, go after Ace. 

**Luffy:** Ehhhhh--

 **Nami:** Wait, what’s happening. 

**Sabo:** Ace ran out right through the front door. 

**Luffy:** And he’s not wearing a shirt. 

**Sabo:** And I’m sure he doesn’t even know where he’s going. 

**Nami:** Someone, please get him. 

**Nami:** In any case, I’m glad we finally know where she went… even if it's Kid’s house…

 **Nami:** Look, I don’t trust Kid, but I trust Killer, so I know she’s in good hands. 

**Ace:** Let’s switch to a more private group chat. 

**Shachi:** Just when the drama was getting good. :(

 **Jewelry Bonney:** Lmao same. 

**Penguin:** What the fuck, when did she get here?

Kid got a notification from a more private line. He opened it to find a text from the Mugiwara’s. 

  
  


**Fucking Pests**

**Ace:** Address. 

**Kid:** You’re in no position to be making demands. 

**Ace:** Really now? 

**Sabo:** Please stop the arguing. My head hurts already. 

**Nami:** Agreed. It’ll get us nowhere. 

**Luffy:** Just give us a picture showing us she’s fine and we’ll all chill out. Won’t we?

 **Ace:** I’m all for it.

Kid glanced over your way before wrapping his arm around your waist, pulling you forward till you were nearly planted in his lap. He lifted his phone and snapped a blurry picture with the two of you in it, as well as a clear zoom in on his middle finger. 

You pushed him away, your hand squished to his face as he pressed in closer. 

What the fuck was he doing? 

He was acting oddly… close and it was terrifying you. 

Was this an attempt to kill you? Maybe it was an attempt to embarrass you. 

_Kid sent a picture._

Killer face planted and the others choked on their drinks. 

**Sanji:** What the fuck. Don’t hold my Y/n- san like that!

 **Ace:** … 

**Sabo:** Shit, I’m going to go after Ace. He ran out again. 

**Nami:** Don’t bother explaining, I think I already know what happened. 

**Ace:** Who’s shirt is that?

 **Nami:** You’re right. I didn’t even notice she was wearing something else. Where’s her dress?

 **Robin:** Oh my. 

**Franky:** Yoooo, that’s SUPER uncool. 

**Killer:** Wait, you guys are getting the wrong idea. 

**Ace:** Who the fuck changed her. 

You grabbed Killer’s phone from him. 

**Killer:** Y/n here! Guys, I’m fine! I don’t know who changed me, but it wasn’t anyone here. 

**Luffy:** Y/n! I missed you!

 **Killer:** I missed you too!

 **Luffy:** … 

**Luffy:** It doesn’t sound right coming from Killer. 

**Ace:** I’m glad you’re fine, but that doesn’t explain why you’re at Kid’s place of all things.

 **Killer:** Long story short, uhh… 

**Kid:** We kidnapped her. 

**Wire:** Now he’s done it.

 **Kid:** You know I could always keep her. 

**Kid:** It'd be so satisfying seeing you rage over it, Portgas.

 **Ace:** You'll be dead before that happens. 

**Nami:** One day. Just one day. I ask that you tone down your competitiveness for one day. 

**Nami:** Not one, but two hormonal, testosterone addled idiots is too much for me. 

**Killer:** I’m not here for your amusement… 

**Sabo:** I think it would be a good idea if I picked her up. Ace, you stay at home. 

**Ace:** Like hell I will. She’ll die if I don’t pick her up.

 **Killer:** I’m sure I’ll manage somehow. 

**_Ace_ ** _was removed from the group chat._

**Luffy:** Ace!!!

 **Kid:** He deserved it. 

**Killer:** I’m pretty sure you all just signed a death sentence. :()

 **Kid:** I'd like to see that skinny bastard try to get at me. 

**Usopp:** Sanji, can you let me crash for a while, I'm scared. 

**Sanji:** Hell no, only the ladies can stay. 

**Usopp:** Discrimination!

 **Chopper:** DISCRIMINATION.

 **Robin:** Chopper, don’t jump onto the bandwagon. 

**Killer:** So, who’s picking me up? 

**Sabo:** Me.

 **Luffy:** AND ME.

 **Sabo:** No, Luffy, you stay at home. I need someone to hold Ace back while I go start up the car. 

Killer snatched his phone from you. 

**Killer:** Killer here. 

**Killer:** I can drop her back off if that’s easier. 

**Sabo:** I would agree, but I think we’d all feel more comfortable if one of us picked her up.

 **Nami:** Same here. 

**Killer:** That’s perfectly understandable. 

**Kid:** Bunch of pussies. You scared Portgas will beat your ass or some shit?

 **Killer:** Kid, chill out. We’re not trying to start a problem.

 **Sabo:** Lmao, don’t worry. The problem was kicked out of the chat. 

**Sabo:** You won’t find any trouble here.

 **Luffy:** :D Let’s go Sabo!

 **Sabo:** Luffy…

 **Luffy:** I’m not staying behind. >:(

 **Sabo:** Fine, but make sure Ace doesn’t follow. 

**Sabo:** Tell Y/n that I’ll drop her off at her dorm. 

**Killer:** Got it. 

As soon as the four of them placed down their phones, you stood up and got yourself ready, which was fairly quick considering you didn’t have anything on you. 

Noticing your inappropriate attire, Killer began looking for something to cover you up. When he couldn’t, he opted to give you one of his coats in exchange. Kid, on the other hand, seemed fairly opposed to that idea and quickly ripped it off, replacing it with another one of his shirts instead. 

When asked the reason for the odd attire, the other responded by giving you a hard glare. 

What was the deal with this guy? 

Now you looked like an absolute buffoon. Not only was your hair in disarray, but you were wearing two oversized shirts that ran to your knees. 

You couldn't really complain though... the shirt smelled like heaven. 

If Kid liked it, Killer had no reason to oppose, even if it was at your expense.

Before Heat and Wire could accompany you to the door, you were suddenly stopped by the gruff red-head. 

“What? Do you need something?” You pinched your lips and looked up at him, a hard look marring your face. 

“What’s with the attitude.” He pinched the side of your face.

"Why wouldn't I have an attitude." You snapped back, "I could have covered myself with a nice, warm coat, but you forced me to wear this stupid shirt instead." 

"Oh?" The other grabbed your collar. "I'm sure this'll keep you warm enough."

"Please tell me you're joking. I'm not even wearing pants..."

"I could always let you wear one of mine."

You held your hands up to your face defensively as he moved in closer, a predatory smile on his face. "T-That's quite alright." 

“I came to remind you that you owe a favor to me.”

You blinked up at him in confusion. 

Favor? 

That's right! The favor for the car! 

Was he going to use it right now? 

You slapped his hand and worked away on the sore spot. “Of course I remember the stupid favor.”

“I don’t think you do.” The other leered over you, a wicked grin stretching his painted lips as he carefully enunciated, “Now you owe me _two_ favors.”

“What the fuck?!” 

What on earth did you do?

“W-What do you mean two favors? I thought I only owed you one for the car.”

“I said what I said.” The other smugly commented, “Anyways, be sure to stop by the shop sometime this week, we finished repairing your vehicle.”

You pointed an accusatory finger his way. “You can’t just brush off that earlier comment! Hey--” 

The red-head pulled your shirt over your head, temporarily blinding you as he kicked you out of his apartment--leaving you annoyed and confused. “What the fuck!” 

Your rubbed at your sore bum as you proceeded to exit the place, but not before tossing a scathing glare at the red-head's door.

I'm going to get back at him one day... 

____________

Kid watched through his window as Sabo walked out of his car to greet you, a relieved smile on his face when he saw that you were okay. Luffy bounded out a second later to pull you into a bear hug.

Killer took in his friend's forlorn expression. It was rare for the blonde to see Kid like this and it usually happened after something bad would occur, which was concerning him greatly. 

“About last night…” Killer trailed off. 

The other's swallowed in trepidation. 

"Killer, don't--" Wire chided, his expression growing serious. 

The atmosphere in the apartment grew dark as Kid’s mood worsened. 

“I’m worried about her.” Heat quietly commented. Killer nodded at that. 

That had been the first time they’d heard you cry out like that and it was quite concerning. Something bad must have happened in your youth to have caused you to have a nightmare like that... It wasn't normal, to say the least, but it certainly wasn't the first time they had heard it. 

Even their leader had nights like that...

“Shut the fuck up.” The red-head growled. “She’s not even your friend. Don’t be concerned about some stranger.” 

The other’s grew taut as their friend went silent.

Pursuing this subject any farther would result in something bad, that much they were sure of. 

"Kid--"

The red-head stood up abruptly before leaving to smoke a cigarette outside. 

"Fucking hell." Killer raked a hand through his hair. 

Wire sighed in exhaustion as he leaned back in his chair and took a long swig of his coffee. Today wasn't going to be a good day for him. 

Killer glanced over at the balcony, watching as the red-head's eyes grew distant as he observed the world below. 

What was he thinking about? 

Even if Kid was putting up a front, Killer knew he was concerned about her nightmares as well. 

Those screams--those inhuman screams were all to familiar to Killer. 

If he recognized them, he knew his friend did as well.

Why wouldn't they when they went through the same thing as you? 


	21. Facade?

You tapped your pencil on the surface of your table rhythmically as you avoided the scathing stares directed your way. 

You couldn’t blame them, even if they were starting to get on your nerves. Your need to constantly move around was a habit to keep your mind off the horrible thoughts. Be that as it may, you couldn’t do anything about it. 

After that nightmare at Kid’s several days ago, you couldn’t focus on anything other than it and that was starting to affect your schoolwork. It didn’t help that your friends were treating you like a child either, which was something you had wanted to avoid. After years of these nightmares, you were used to them, even if your friends were not; but the shittiest thing had to have been the lack of a certain presence--that being Ace. You couldn't get out the possibility that he might have been steering clear of you. 

Had you angered him at the party? You honestly couldn't think of anything you had done wrong.

_'Maybe someone peed in his drink or something.'_

With a sigh, you laid your head back on the desk, relishing the coolness of it as your teacher monotonously droned on about the lecture. 

As much as you hated to admit it, the lack of his presence was annoying. It was as if those eight years separated had all but disappeared. It wasn’t like you were attached to the goofy ravenette, but you were starting to crave the warmness he seemed to exude. It was intoxicating, especially when you wanted to escape the gloom of your night terrors. He had this warmth that no one else seemed to have. It was all consuming, completely encompassing you with a blanket of comfort--or maybe that was just his idiotic tendencies brainwashing you... 

You did what little you could during your class and slipped out with the rest of the students as soon as it finished. Once the hallways cleared out, you loitered around the front of the lecture hall as you awaited the gloomy ravenette’s response. 

As Trafalgar had promised, he was to tutor you in your classes to help you raise your grades. Even if you were reluctant to attend them, you knew you needed to. 

What was more important? Your grades or your social life, as non-existent as it was. 

Your phone buzzed in your pocket, promptly breaking you out of your thoughts. 

**Torao**

**Law:** Y/n-ya. 

**Y/n:** Torao! You took forever!

 **Law:** Shachi needed me for something.

 **Y/n:** Oh, in that case, it’s fine. 

**Law:** I’m already at the library.

 **Y/n:** Are you?

 **Y/n:** I’ll be there real quick!

 **Law:** Don’t keep me waiting. 

You pulled your coat tighter as you ventured outside, cringing when the first few gusts hit you like a semi-truck. Boy was it cold. As much as you loved the fall, you knew you couldn't handle the chill. Still, it gave you an excuse to look cute under a mound of clothes--turtlenecks being your go to. Although, these days, it was a little more dangerous to wear them, especially around Ace. Oh, how he loved to pull it over your face and tackle you into a chokehold... 

You quickly forgot the thoughts of him as another breeze assaulted you. You needed to get into a heated building and quick.

You sprinted to the library as fast as you could and stopped by the entrance to catch your breath before strolling in, carefully looking through every nook for the ravenette. When he spotted you lingering around the front like an idiot, he waved you over, a dark look to his eyes as he took in your disheveled appearance. 

“Y/n-ya.”

“Oh, Torao!” You dropped your bag on the seat across from him and slid down, eagerly rubbing at your hands to regain some warmth in them. 

“You kept me waiting.” He sternly replied, a serious look to his expression as he cracked open his textbook. 

“That’s rich coming from you. You kept me waiting in the hall for over twenty minutes when you went off with Shachi.”

The two of you exchanged silent stares until the other gave in, turning away with a huff. “Fine.”

“Great.” You pulled out your notebook and laid it in front of you. “Speaking of being late, where’s Luffy? I thought he was going to attend this session as well.”

“He dipped last minute. Said he had something to do with his brothers.” 

“Oh.” That was a shame. 

In all honesty, this was the worst prospect for you. If Luffy wasn’t here to keep the mood up, who was going to do it? There was no way you’d survive two grueling hours with this gloomy ravenette. 

In truth though, you just wanted Luffy to be safe. You didn’t really care that he wasn’t here right now. It didn’t matter to you that he was out with his brothers.

That was a lie--it was definitely affecting you. 

Why hadn’t they invited you? 

Maybe it was a boy's thing only? Maybe they couldn’t invite you because Torao had told them that you were preoccupied. 

No, Ace would have just dragged you with or without Torao’s consent. 

You grabbed your head as you thought on it. 

‘No, that’s a selfish thought… Maybe they didn’t want you to come.’ You pushed down the anxiety and refocused on the matter ahead. You needed focus on what really mattered right now and that was your failing grade. Luffy could come after. 

You internally mourned for yourself as the ravenette glared at you impatiently. He had neither the time nor the self-restraint to be tutoring someone as reluctant as yourself. You were the one who wanted help in the first place, so why were you acting so unenthusiastic? 

“You have a problem with Luffy’s absence?” He asked carefully, a calculative look to him. 

“No.” Yes, you really had a problem being alone with him, but what could you do about it?

With a reluctant sigh, you gave the other the ‘ok’ and began looking over your textbook. 

You would get over this stupid session and go back home to binging the latest episodes of the Walking Dead, even if it meant tolerating the grumpy ravenette for a couple of hours. 

Even an hour into the meeting and you were already losing focus, your mind drifting onto darker matters as the other ranted on and on about your class. You really wanted to pay attention, you really did, but you couldn’t help but recall that horrific nightmare from a couple nights ago. 

It continued to plague you wherever you were at, be that your dorm or your friend’s house. You couldn’t concentrate in class and you couldn’t even pay attention to Torao, which was sure to get on his nerves. 

You honestly felt bad. You had been the one to plead for his help and you were acting as if you didn’t want it. It was ungrateful and quite frankly, humiliating, but there wasn’t much you could do about it. 

Those cold hands would wrap around your neck and cloud over your thoughts.

You knew it was only a matter of time before the other would notice and when he did, you knew it wasn’t going to be good. 

That said, you hadn’t expected him to catch on as quick as he did…

Trafalgar’s brow twitched as he took in your dazed expression, a vein popping on his head as he did. What the hell were you doing? You were the one who had called him out here and yet, you were sitting there as if you hadn’t a clue as to what was going on. 

“Y/n-ya.” He growled, his patience close to snapping. “Are you paying attention?”

“H-Huh? Oh, Torao.” You sheepishly scratched at the back of your neck, offering the other an apologetic smile in the meanwhile. “Sorry, I just got distracted for a second.”

Distracted? More like dazed. 

“Look, you’re the one who asked me for help. Don’t come crying to me when you fail your class because you didn’t pay attention.”

“I must not have gotten enough sleep last night...” You averted your gaze from his unblinking ones, “I’m sorry, I swear I’ll pay attention.”

“You better. I didn’t come all this way to entertain you.”

You offered another apology as you attempted to refocus on the subject ahead. 

Another twenty minutes in and you were already getting distracted, much to Trafalgar’s frustration. He knew you weren’t normally like this, but he couldn’t pinpoint why you were starting to act like this. Was it the party? Were you given something abnormal or was it Kid’s doing? With that red-head, anything was possible. 

Trafalgar raked a hand through his dark strands and blew out a sigh, a feeble attempt to recollect himself. As much as he wanted to avoid it, he knew he couldn’t. Your glum mood was starting to affect him too, much to his annoyance. 

“What’s bothering you?”

You snapped your gaze up to him. “What?” 

Did he catch onto it already?

“I’m not going to repeat myself.” The man crossed his arms and leaned forward expectantly. 

What did he expect you to say? ‘I’m so sorry for getting distracted. The stupid nightmares about my friend are affecting me.’

Would he really take that as an answer? He was more than likely to laugh right in your face than to accept it. 

“Well--,” You bit your lip hesitantly. I mean, you could always just make something up. “I think the expired food I ate this morning is acting up.” 

The ravenette quirked his brow up, as if to say, ‘you expect me to believe that bullshit?’

“I’m a doctor, Y/n-ya, not an idiot. If you truly ate expired food, you’d be running to the bathroom by now. So, why don’t you cut the bullshit and tell me it straight.”

Right… You probably should have thought of a better excuse. He wasn't as aloof as Luffy was, after all. 

“Well, shit, doc, you didn’t have to come for me like that...” You fiddled with your pencil nervously as the other pinned you down with an expectant stare. 

Why was he pressuring you like this? Couldn’t he just ignore the matter and just tutor you? Why did he have to get involved? It wasn’t any of his business anyways. 

Try as you may, you couldn't avoid the subject either.

As soon as you recalled Lola’s bloodied form, you froze up, the words getting caught in your throat. 

It wasn’t a matter of whether you wanted to tell him--you just couldn’t tell him. The words physically wouldn't come out and you were far too afraid to try. 

“It’s…” Your nails dug into the soft flesh of your palm, creating dark crescents in it. “It’s nothing, really. I just didn’t get enough sleep or something.” You murmured out quietly. 

“Y/n--”

“I said it was nothing, Torao. Can we just study? You only have to deal with me for forty more minutes.”

You wanted to avoid it if you could...

The man narrowed his eyes at you but said nothing, but instead of complying with you, he opted to slam his textbook and scroll through his phone.

You were absolutely baffled. 

The man only lifted his eyes as he matter-of-factly stated, “If you aren’t inclined to put in as much effort as me, I don’t see why I should help you. You’ll only continue to be distracted if I leave you like this, so there’s no point in helping you.” 

What were you supposed to do with his help? It wasn’t like you could learn this by yourself. 

You leaned in and hissed, “You’re being unreasonable.” 

“I could say the same about you. Your reluctance is wasting my time.” He carefully placed his phone down and added, “In fact, I might as well just leave now.”

Dread raced through your veins. 

“W-Wait.” You stammered as you held down his textbook to prevent him from leaving. “Let’s talk about this for a second.”

“What’s there to talk about? If you refuse to speak your mind, I see no reason in staying.” 

“Torao.” You whined, moving over to grab at the sleeve of his coat. The man looked down at you and clicked his tongue, a look of mild annoyance etched into his face. 

“You’re really pathetic, you know that?” He growled, “And know this, I won’t help you until you tell me what’s going on. I don’t have the time to keep up with your bullshit, got it?”

You nodded meekly. 

What was the harm anyways? He was a doctor, wasn’t he? He was supposed to be impartial… Then again, you weren’t exactly his patient either. 

But how were you supposed to open up to him when you hadn’t even told your story to Luffy, your life-long best friend? Sure, you grew up with Trafalgar, but it wasn’t like you were the closest. 

You bit down on your lip again, mindlessly chewing on it as you hashed over your options. Was this tutoring session worth it anyways? You could always just try to learn the content yourself… and end up failing later. 

You gripped at your hair and groaned. 

In your daze, the ravenette took the opportunity to pack up his things and begin walking out. Realizing his absence, you quickly gathered your belongings and dashed after him, earning yourself a couple of hard glares from all the commotion you were making. After you gave them a quick apology, you ran to his side, tightly gripping onto his overcoat as you harshly whispered, “Sometimes you’re more of a dick than Kid, you know that?”

“Just shut up and follow me.” He grumbled in a low tone as he slowly started ascending the library stairs. 

You followed him without complaint, albeit a little confused. One moment he was telling you to get lost and the next, he was telling you to follow him. Did this man have two personalities or something?

All at once, the two of you were stopped when an imposing presence made itself known. The tall man looked down at you through the band over his eyes. 

He had a bundle of books in one hand and a large duffel in the other. You immediately recognized the large x shaped scar on his chin.

“Drake.” Law growled out, his expression growing cold as the other loomed over him. 

“Trafalgar, what a surprise.” Drake replied indifferently, his posture lax as the other grew rigid.

You glanced between the two of them, confused at their odd dynamic. Did they know each other or something? You'd never seen them interact before, so this was quite the sight.

As much as you wanted to know what was going on between them, you knew you weren’t getting anything out of either of them. 

“Pardon me, I must have been in your way.” The ginger stepped out of the way and flourished his hand to the hall ahead. 

The ravenette wordlessly bumped past the other, his hands shoved deep in his pocket as he prowled up the stairs. 

Before you could follow on after him though, Drake held you back. There was a stern look to his face as he whispered, “That Trafalgar, he’s quite cold, isn’t he?”

“How do you mean?” You warily stepped back from the other. You couldn’t be sure of his intentions, but you felt safe enough to venture farther. 

“Nothing much.” His icy eyes went back to the retreating ravenette. “Just be wary of that one.”

Without an explanation, the large man disappeared from the hall, leaving you absolutely baffled and questioning what the hell had happened. 

Why was everyone being so mysterious these days?

...Not that you could blame them. You also had a couple of skeletons in your closet.

You didn’t have much time to process what had happened when Law rounded the corner again and latched onto your arm, roughly dragging you away.

“Hey! Where are you taking me?”

“Somewhere less crowded.” Without another word, he opened up the latch to the rooftop and slipped through.

“Isn’t this the restricted area? What the fuck are we doing?”

Trafalgar peeked his head through the small opening and gave you a smug smirk. “Coming from you, that’s quite hilarious. Aren’t you the troublemaker here?”

He was acting as if the previous occurrence had never happened. 

'Strange...' 

You put is aside for now. There was a time and a place to think on it later. 

You quickly cleared your throat and responded with, “Well yes, but that’s when I’m with Luffy.”

“I heard you make quite the trouble even without him. Don't you, Luffy's girlfriend?” 

You choked on your words. "Luffy's girlfriend? Where on earth did you get that from?"

"I'm not surprised you haven't heard all the rumors circulating around. After that party, you've made quite the name for yourself."

You paled. "Rumor? What rumors?"

"Oh, nothing much. They're mostly about Nami, but there are a few about you and Luffy." He chuckled. 

"You're a jerk, you know that. You know for a fact that I'm not with Luffy."

"I already know that."

"Then why did you feel the need to tell me?"

"Just trying to be considerate," He rolled his eyes before extending his hand to you, offering to help you up through the narrow entryway, "but let's not talk of it anymore.

"Agreed. I'll talk more about this 'rumor' with Luffy later." 

You slipped your hand into his cool one, relishing the firmness of his grip as he brought you up. 

Once you were through, you took a moment to marvel at the scene ahead. It took the breath away from you. You’d never really taken the time to admire your University. It was one like no other. You could almost say it resembled Hogwarts in structure. With a grand castle-like architecture and spires that reached the heavens, it truly was a design created by masterminds. 

You raised your flushed hands to your mouth, blowing on them to start the recirculation of blood again. 

Trafalgar brushed his hair aside and blew out a crystallized breath, his cheeks growing a dark red as he stood in the cold. He truly enjoyed the sereneness of standing up here. It gave him this sense of calm and tranquility, which was why it was one of his favorite places to be. 

In these moments of silence, he was reminded of his family. 

“My sister would have liked this view.” You tore your attention away from the school and redirected it to the ravenette. 

You were caught off guard by his sudden comment.

He had a sister?

You hadn’t even known that, despite having lived with him for a good portion of your life, but what really struck you as odd was his use of ‘would’. 

“Would have? Did something happen to her?” You asked. 

The ravenette’s eyes grew distant as he gazed over the horizon. “She died with my parents.” 

You held in a gasp before it could escape. 

Having never been the one to open up, you were quite shocked to hear his confession. Why was he choosing to tell you this now? Was there some kind of ulterior motive or did he tell you this of his own accord?

Still, the melancholy lilt to his voice sounded genuine and it was quite… heartbreaking. What had he gone through?

It cut deep because of how familiar it felt and because of how tragic it really was. With how young he was, it must have been hard losing his only family. You couldn't even imagine what that was like, having never had one, but you knew it must have been hard--maybe even harder than what you went through. 

“I’m sorry to hear that, Torao…” 

You should have known that it was odd that Law knew only Corazon. I mean, he had been a weird one even when you met for the first time. 

You recalled those cold, dead eyes staring at you from behind the tall blonde's leg. 

Now it all made sense. The cold shoulders, the dark stares, and the closed off demeanor. It was his coping mechanism… 

“I didn’t tell you that to hear you say sorry.”

You froze. “What?” 

He leaned against the rail overlooking the school and glanced over at you. 

“Then why?”

Trafalgar threw his head back and sighed. “Who knows,” He chuckled.

A gust of wind violently lashed at you as you wandered over to the ravenette’s side, causing you to huddle deeper into your coat. 

As beautiful as the scenery was, the cold was a big-turn off, but you weren't going to let it get to you. If a skinny bastard like Trafalgar could handle it, you could as well. 

"You're one gloomy bastard, aren't you?" You broke him out of his depressing mood as you grabbed hold of one of his hands.

"What are you--" The boy was temporarily stunned as your much smaller, much warmer hands enveloped his. 

You silenced him with one look as you began fishing through your backpack for a sharpie. When you found one, you uncapped it and began doodling over his hand. 

"Y/n-ya, what the hell do you think you're doing?" 

"What do you think?" Your lips quirked up when you were finished with what you were doing. 

Satisfied with the end-result, you capped the marker once more and dumped it into your pack. 

Scrawled right above his 'death' tattoos on his knuckles was a pair of hastily drawn 'alive' ones. 

"It looks tacky." 

"You know what, the word death is tacky. Maybe it you had something like alive written on it, you wouldn't be so gloomy all the time."

His cheeks grew warm as he took in his new 'tattoos'. 

As you took in his baffled expression, you laughed, momentarily taken aback by his confused state. It was truly funny that something as small as this could catch him off-guard, but you were thankful that it did. 

All was going according to your plan!

You just really hated that sad look in his eyes. It reminded you too much of your own... 

The boy’s eyes fell to you during your moments of distraction. 

‘ _Maybe the reason I opened up was_ _because you reminded me of someone…_ ’ He thought as you continued to laugh at his horrible new tattoos. 

After a moment of bated silence, you fell back into your gloomy mood, reminded of why you had been distracted in the first place. 

You wanted to open up to him as well, for some odd reason.

Was it because he had confessed his dark secret to you, or was it something more? 

“I--” You stopped abruptly as you thought about it.

Law's sudden 'cheerfulness' disappeared as soon as your mood changed.

You felt it only right to reciprocate your story the same way he had. You wanted to tell him that you understood a bit of what he was experiencing, but you felt as if it wasn’t your place to say. 

Still, he had opened himself up to you. Wasn’t it only right if you did the same?

You felt the ghostly fingers wrap around your neck again as you began.

"You asked me why I was so confused, right?"

"Y/n, you don't have to tell me--"

"I know, but I feel like I need to get it off my chest." 

You inhaled deeply. 

Would it be so bad to tell him?

In reality, you would have wanted to tell Luffy first, but as fate would have it, Law was the one who would be the first to listen. 

“Back when I lived in an orphanage in Italy, I had a friend.” 

Law's eyes widened. 

You swallowed the lump of dread in your throat. 

“And her name was Lola.”

And that's where it all began... 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't wanna play ya'll, but you aren't going to find out her backstory for a gooooood while. Gotta build it up, you know what I mean?


	22. The Devil Dogs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize in advance for the shitty writing. D:

Once you were finished with your first two classes, you strolled down to the communal cafeteria to meet up with your friends, Usopp and Chopper. They flagged you down before walking over to a secluded table. Though they were the energetic bunch, they tended to keep to themselves when in public places, something you understood full well. Luffy brought in enough attention as is and you didn’t need any more troublemakers in your hands.

“It’s been a while since we hung out, haven’t we?” Chopper commented as he took the first bite of his food. 

“A while? We literally saw each other at the party.” You fished around your bag for your neatly wrapped sandwich, exclaiming in joy when you found it buried under a mound of books. 

“Wasn’t it a week ago.” Chopper began hungrily scarfing down his lunch as the three of you conversed over matters of interest. 

“Was it? Man, time flies fast.” You took a sip of your water. "It felt like yesterday when it happened."

"You're sense of time is whack, Y/n."

Usopp nodded as he dug into his own food. "Must have been all the excitement that caught up to you. It probably took you a whole week to process all that happened in the party. I don't blame you though, a shit ton happened. I mean, from the whole Ace fiasco to the blowout with Kid--that shit was crazy."

"I know right! I was completely surprised that Kid picked you up! I honestly thought that he'd murder you. You have no idea how worried we all were, especially Nami. She went over to Ace's place and completely bombarded him with questions." Chopper butted into while Usopp was still talking.

You winced. No doubt that was one of the worst experiences for the ravenette. Nami on a bad day was somehow worse than being yelled at by Kid. 

"I really wish he hadn't." You groaned, "Now I owe him two favors instead of one. Can you believe that? That asshole thinks he can just take advantage of me whenever he wants." You stabbed your sandwich violently, causing your friends to jump back in terror as you did.

"R-R-Right, well, e-enough about Kid." Usopp cleared his throat before he waved a fork your way, a devious smile replacing his nervous one. "I’m more curious about the rumors I heard the other day.” 

Both you and Chopper glanced over at Usopp. 

Rumors? What rumors did he mean?

“So, hey,” Usopp said over several bites, “Is it true that you’re Luffy’s girlfriend?”

You choked on a piece of ham and began coughing violently into your sleeve. You had been caught off guard by that sudden and unexpected question. What had prompted him to ask that? Wasn’t the answer obvious?

Chopper rubbed your back in concern as he shot Usopp a glare.

“What-What makes you think that?” You cleared your throat as you asked. 

“I mean, you kissed him, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, I did, but that was a mistake.” You pounded your chest a couple of times to get the piece of food lodged in your throat down the tube. “But if you’re so interested in that silly little rumor, how about the one where you were all over Kaya.”

Chopper stopped chewing momentarily, his eyes as wide as saucers as he stared at his best friend. “You were with Kaya?” He questioned. 

“W-W-Well.”

You grinned cheekily, pointing your half-eaten sandwich his way as you declared, “I knew you liked her! Nothing ever escapes me!”

“I could say the same about you, Y/n. Sometimes, I wonder if you’re truly best friends with Luffy. You act more like a couple than friends.” 

“That’s because I grew up with him, numbnut.” You finished up your sandwich and tossed the remains into a nearby trash-can, whispering a quick ‘nice’, before refocusing on the conversation. “But I’m glad for you, Usopp. I think Kaya’s a really nice girl.”

Usopp’s cheeks grew a deep red as he averted his gaze to scratch at his cheek. “Y-You think?”

“Yeah!” Chopper exclaimed. 

“And an FYI, I’m not with Luffy. I’m sure he’d rather marry a slab of steak rather than a human.”

“Can’t argue with that logic.” Usopp shrugged. 

As the three of you wrapped up your lunch break, you prepared to leave for your next class, slowly putting the remainders of your food into a ziplock bag. 

Before the three of you went on your separate ways, Chopper held you back and quietly added, “I’m really glad you feel better, Y/n. The group was worried about you.”

You knew the past couple days had been rough. With your nightmares constantly tormenting you, it was hard to put on a smile and continue on with your day, but thanks to a certain person, you were able to put that behind you. You weren’t alone--not anymore. 

You knew your nightmares would continue to plague you, but for now, you were content with just talking about them with someone. You knew that someday--somehow, you would get over them.

Still, the dream of Lola continued to linger in your mind. The words 'find me' and 'find the truth' echoed around your mind. 

You already knew the painful truth, even if you wanted to coat it in pretty lies. 

You already knew what had happened to her, but you had no idea who had abducted her, much less where they had taken her...

You pushed the thoughts aside and opted to think of brighter things to keep your mind from lingering on the darkness too long. 

“Oh, about that.” You gave him a warm smile. “There’s nothing to be worried about anymore. I resolved it.”

“Resolved? How so?” He cocked his head to the side in confusion. 

You recalled the events that had gone done a couple of days ago, a large smile splitting your face as you failed to contain the warmth that seeped from your pores. “Let’s just say a friend helped me.”

When you said no more, Chopper concluded his thoughts, much satisfied with the answer you had provided. For what it’s worth, he was glad you were feeling better, even if you didn’t feel like elaborating on how you had gotten over it. This much was enough for him. 

With a quick wave and a small smile, the smaller brunette left your side, hastily bounding over to Usopp’s side to accompany him to his next class.

You waved back before making the long trek to your next class. 

____________

When you arrived, you sat yourself down next to an acquaintance and made small talk with her. It was quite nice going to a class with someone you knew, especially when most of your friends were significantly older than you. That meant you didn't share classes with any of them, making it quite hard to deal with being paired with strangers. You didn't do well with people you didn't know... 

As soon as class started, you pulled out your notebook and began doodling in it. 

The professor strutted into the class a mere ten seconds into your drawing session, immediately dampening the mood in the classroom. She instructed everyone to silence their electronic devices before handing out several sheets of paper. 

“Great, a test.” Your friend murmured. 

You sighed dejectedly before pulling out your pencil, twirling it in your hand as a sheet was slid your way. 

“Good luck.” You whispered to your friend as the two of you exchanged fist pumps. She nodded solemnly and lowered her head to begin her test. 

Halfway into the hour for your test, you were forced to pause when the class started whispering to one another. The teacher whacked her pointer on the desk and silenced everyone.

It wasn't even five minutes before the whispering started again.

“What did I say about talking? Anyone who’s caught speaking again will receive a zero on their test. Am I clear?”

A student in front raised their hand, “But Professor, there’s someone outside.”

“And what of it?” The teacher snapped back, clearly uninterested in what they had to say. “You shouldn’t be concerned about what others are doing. You’re taking a test right now.” 

“But Professor--”

The teacher thwacked their pointer on the whiteboard once more. “Silence! Any more talk will result in a deduction of points!”

You groaned in disappointment before slouching over your desk. You had hoped that the distraction would be enough to disrupt the test, but it clearly hadn’t. 

Thankfully, your little ray of hope, which happened to be the student in the front row, decided that it would be in his best interests not to back down, even if the teacher was glaring at him vehemently.

This man had balls of steel and you were quite impressed by them. No doubt, everyone was praising him for that as well. After-all, he was giving them a free pass out of the test. 

Not a second later, the same student raised their hand again. “Professor, I really must insist. That person is writing on the floor.”

“Mr. Hayward, if you so much as speak again, I’ll--”

“They’re writing on the floor with gasoline!” Another student piped up. 

As soon as they said that, the rest of the class clamored to the windows, their faces pressed up against the glass as they marveled down in awe. 

“What?” The professor prowled to the front and gasped in horror. “Heavens, I must inform the security.” She hobbled over to her desk and retrieved her phone. 

You pulled your acquaintance with you as you walked over to the window as well. You had to admit, as soon as you had done so, you regretted it. 

You really wished you hadn't gotten up from your seat... 

The cloaked individual below dropped a lighter onto the gasoline and fled the area, pulling along a blonde and a lanky boy in the meanwhile. After a minute or so, the smaller boy’s cloak lit up in flames as the elder ravenette made a feeble attempt to pat it down. The blonde ran around them in obvious panic as he too threw his clothes onto the other to put out the flames. 

You nearly passed out right there and then. 

The head of shaggy black hair and the scrawny blonde were quite obviously Luffy and Sabo.

How had they been roped into this? Did Ace somehow convince them to commit this crime with him?

You facepalmed.

What was written on the floor was, ‘Let’s talk, Peep Peep!’ 

It was clear as day to whom this was addressed to and you were not liking where this was going. Couldn’t they have just sent you a simple text? Was it necessary to do this? 

Then again, this was Ace we were talking about… He always loved to be the dramatic one and his penchant for lighting things on fire was like no other. 

The other students began whispering to one another as the teacher attempted to pull them back. 

“--Peep Peep? Who’s that?--”

“--Who are they?--”

“--Isn’t that arson?--”

“--That’s crazy, bro~--”

Your acquaintance looked at you, her face deadly pale. “Do you think it’s addressed to me?” She asked. “My nickname is Peppers. Maybe they meant to spell it instead of Peep.”

“Wait, I don't think they mean you--" 

Before you could tell her that she was wrong, she interrupted you. “I’m sure it’s me!” Her cheeks turned a bright pink.

“Well, I don’t know. I don’t think they misspelled it--” 

She shushed you quickly. 

“But this is a little over the top, don’t you think?” She asked. “I mean, can’t they get arrested for this?”

You sighed in exasperation. You knew you wouldn't be able to convince her, no matter how much you tried. 

“Only if they get caught.” You shrugged. 

Even if they got caught, Ace would use his silver tongue to get them out of that situation. 

'Damn his charisma and damn his silver tongue!'

You knew you had gotten caught up with it several times as well, so you had an idea of how potent it was. That man could talk himself straight out of death row if he put his mind to it; that's how dangerous it was. 

Sometimes you wished he’d get caught just so he could learn his lesson, but you knew it wouldn't be of much help. He was far too pig-headed to admit his mistakes. 

With a sigh and a shake of your head, you refocused on the scene ahead. 

Fortunately, security was able to douse the flaming letters before it got any bigger. They then proceeded to chase after the perpetrators, their arms lifted threateningly as the others fled the area.

You laughed as you watched the three troublemakers evade the large brutes. It was almost comical watching them run around like cartoon characters. 

It was obvious that the commotion below was gaining the attention of other classes as well. 

You noticed the little heads popping out of every window from the other buildings. Clearly, their interest had been piqued as well. How could they not when there were flaming letters on the floor?

This certainly wasn't something that happened everyday. In fact, these kind of things started happening when Ace returned from his trip abroad. 

You facepalmed again. Maybe this truly was your fault. 

You hated that this was their method to get your attention, but honestly… you wouldn’t have it any other way.

Could you really consider yourself a troublemaker if you didn’t indulge in their bad habits once in a while?

You even had a few scars as testimony to that. 

Once the professor was able to reel the students back in, she decided to postpone the test for another day, calling it a day as the students might have taken this opportunity to cheat. 

When she announced the end of the class, the students rushed out to spread the potential rumors. Many were asking who ‘Peep Peep’ was and others were more curious as to the fate of the three. Had they been caught yet? Did they escape? 

Honestly, none of these concerned you. Mainly because you knew who ‘Peep Peep’ was and who had done it. Right now, you were more concerned about your escape. Would you be able to evade them when they would eventually come for you?

You knew it was only a matter of time before they found you. 

As you snuck down the hallway, you suddenly caught sight of the troublemakers on the other end. Your heartbeat elevated as their eyes scanned over the area, landing directly on your friend as she bolted their way.

A gaggle of girls surrounded the trio as the halls became more crowded. 

‘Shit--maybe I should have tried harder in telling her that it wasn't addressed to her...’ You cringed in guilt as you continued to sneak past the other students, flattening yourself to the wall to make yourself a smaller target. With your dark hoodie and oversized scarf, you were almost positive you were blending in with the others. A perfect disguise, if you will. You felt like James Bond. 

Your friend walked up to Ace and looked up at him in confusion. This was clearly not the person she had expected, but she wasn’t complaining. He was hot. 

“T-That message on the floor. D-Did you mean Peppers instead of Peep?” She mumbled quietly, her face growing a bright red as the other continued to stare down at her in confusion.

"Peppers?" Ace frowned in confusion. 

"Oh, you didn't mean--fuck, I'm so sorry." As soon as she realized that the message hadn't been addressed to her, your friend grew a bright red, her face twisting in humiliation. 

After a moment or so, a comforting smile stretched Ace's lips as he ruffled the top of her head. If there's one thing he hated, it was causing pain to others. 

"I think you got the wrong person, mademoiselle." 

Her face grew brighter. "I-I'm sorry. I must have misread it..."

"Oh, no worries," He silently ushered her to an area where there wouldn't be so many eyes, "but it'd be thankful if you could point me to the direction of Y/n."

"Y/n?" Her head whipped around to your general area. When she couldn't find you, she shrugged her shoulders. "I could've sworn she was here a minute ago..." 

"Don't worry about it," He smiled warmly down at her, "Thank you for your help though." 

You felt bad for her, but thankful that Ace hadn't blown things out of proportion. Despite his many bad traits, you truly admired his compassionate side. Similar to him, Luffy and Sabo were also the type to help others when in need. 

It wasn't like this was a bad situation or anything, but most boys would have simply ignored her. This was something you knew Ace wouldn't do. I mean, maybe Torao or Kid might have, but not Ace. 

You shook your head. 

This was not the time to be thinking this. This was a life or death situation--actually, it wasn’t, but you liked to make things a little more dramatic. 

You slipped through a pair of gossiping students as you began your trek to your next class.

Unfortunately, before you could get any farther, you heard a familiar whistle echo down the hallways. Your pulse quickened and your blood froze in your veins. 

How had he reduced the distance between the two of you so quickly? Was he the flash?

You were like a deer in headlights when you saw those onyx locks peek through the corner of your intersecting halls. 

"This isn't happening." You murmured as his eyes looked through the various students... until they saw you. 

His eyes trailed downwards till they caught sight of your mummified form. You were completely wrapped head to toe in a scarf and a hoodie to conceal your presence. It was poorly done, but it did its job…

His eyes grew wide in joy as soon as he spotted you. The boy quickly lifted his hand and shot you a giddy wave.

‘Nope, nope, nope. Not today.’ You chanted in your head like a mantra. 

As soon as the other two caught wind of you, you began running down the halls, only turning around once to catch a glimpse of them sprinting after you. 

You nearly fainted right there and then. 

There was this adrenaline from the chase that got to you. The excitement of it all sent you into overdrive as you turned a corner.

Some part of you wished that he’d catch you while the other was more adamant on getting the hell out of there. 

Why was that?

You clambered up the staircase to an empty classroom and hid there, breathing heavily as you attempted to recover from the sudden exercise. You really needed to get out and start doing some push ups or something. This was just plain pathetic… 

Over your loud breathing, you heard a muffled, “I think she ran that way!”

It was definitely Ace’s voice. 

Another pair of footsteps receded into the distance as the voice trailed off. 

It would seem that you had evaded them for now. 

Why were they so adamant on chasing you anyways? This wasn't the zombie apocalypse, they could just talk to you normally after school. 

As soon as the other’s departed, you slinked into the farthest corner of the room, quietly pressing your hand to your chest to soften the loud thumping of your heart. 

No more than a second later, the door abruptly opened and the loud, frantic breaths of the other filled the silent room. You slapped your hand to your mouth and crawled to the next door military style. When you got to the front, you opened it and sped out. 

As soon as you had done so, a sudden pressure around your throat alerted you to the presence of your assailant.

As it turned out, the person chasing you had already figured out your location and decided to trick you into thinking that they hadn't found you. 

'Sneaky bastard.' 

Your soul nearly evacuated from your body and you were about to scream when a calloused hand shot out and clamped down on your mouth. Though he had you in a chokehold, you could tell they were just playing around with you. There was no real intention to hurt you.

You tapped on their arm and repeated, “Tap out, tap out.” 

You already knew who it was just by this alone.

“I thought you promised you weren’t going to run anymore, _friend._ ” 

The hand on your face was warm and oddly pleasant, not to mention the fact that it smelled divine. Was he using some type of lotion? You’d have to ask him what brand it was later. 

The grip on your mouth left as soon as it arrived, giving you the opportunity to turn around and figure out the identity of your assailant. 

The ravenette leaned back against the brick wall and offered you a crooked grin. 

“Fucking hell, Ace.” The ends of your mouth quirked up at his smug expression. “Asshole!” You thumped your fist against his chest, only to find it enveloped by his much larger hand. “You know you scared the shit out of me, right? And let’s not mention that fact that you publicly humiliated me by etching my name in flaming letters for the whole school to see!” 

The man looked down at you with half-lidded eyes and gave you a low, “Mhm.”

"Chill out, Peep, it's not like they know you're nickname." He leaned in and dropped his head into the crook of your neck, inhaling deeply as he slipped into a state of absolute bliss. 

"A-Ace, what are you doing?"

You pushed down the flurry of butterflies attempting to erupt in your stomach. 

"Hugging you, what does it look like? Friends do that, don't they?"

"Well, yeah, but this is--"

"An action of affection, Peep. Don't think too hard on it or your brain might self-combust like Luffy's." 

'Jerk.' 

You were definitely going to get back at him for that. 

You blushed from the toes up. There were no words to express how exactly you were feeling right now. 

The soft hair tingling your nape and the warm breath on your skin was sending your senses into overdrive. What were you supposed to do?

You suddenly lost the ability to breath as he pressed in closer, his hands wrapping around your midsection possessively.

When you finally found the courage to speak up, you stammered, “H-Hey--” You gently pushed him back as you offered a tight-lipped frown, “Don’t just ‘mhm’ me. Won't get arrested for arson?"

The man wordlessly reached out and dug his fingers into the scarf around your head, pulling it free. Your hair showered over his fingers as they lingered near your face. 

“They’ll never catch me, Peep.” The deep baritone of his voice vibrated through your body. “I have my tricks. There’s no need to worry about the cops.” 

The hand around your fist tightened as the other moved to press into the wall opposite of you, effectively caging you into his arms. “Besides, can you blame me for doing this? I really--,” His eyes locked onto yours, "--really, missed you." 

Your heart sped up in your chest as your body turned to jelly. Did he even know what kind of effect he had on you? He must have because he was grinning like an idiot, which was starting to peeve you off. 

“What kind of bullshit is that, you idiot?” You averted your gaze from his intense mahogany ones.

“The kind of bullshit you like.” 

"That makes no sense."

After a moment of silence, the ravenette went, his brows digging over his eyes as he pinned you down with a grave look. 

“What happened with you when you were with that red-head?”

Did he mean Kid?

“Red-head? You mean Kid?"

The man wordlessly pulled back, his sharp eyes staring straight into yours. “Fuck, Y/n.” He chuckled breathlessly, “You have no idea how worried I was when I learned you had been kidnapped by that psycho.”

You laughed at his choice of words. 

“As much as I’d like to agree with you, Kid is anything but a psycho. He’s actually quite nice, even if he loves to force people into giving him favors…” You whispered that last part as an after-thought. It’d be better if Ace didn’t know that smidgen of information. 

“Oh, nicer than me?” He intertwined his fingers into your hair to pull you closer. 

“Much nicer.”

His eyes narrowed and a blanket of tension covered you before he pulled back with a huff, his normal smile returning once more. “Well, I’ll have to change that, won’t I?” 

“You know, if you were that worried, you could have just… sent me a text?” You questioned. 

“Well, I--I know that, but you could have also just paid a quick visit to let me know that you were okay.” He retorted right back.

The two of you suddenly went quiet.

Sure, you could have just visited him, but that felt a little weird considering the nature of your relationship. Even though you promised to be friends, it still felt foreign and new.

You were sure he felt the exact same way. This new dynamic developing between the two of you was unknown and because of how different it was to your previous one, neither of you knew how to proceed with it. 

As children, the two of you did nothing but argue and fight back, but now that you had promised to start anew, the two of you had no idea what to do next. Were you supposed to continue like before--exchanging banters and tackling each other out of nowhere, or were you supposed to act like ‘friends’. 

You pressed your fingers into your temples and pushed the thoughts away. Ace seemed to have had the same idea when he stepped back, a hesitant expression on his face as an awkward silence covered the area. 

All this thinking suddenly brought up another idea in your mind. You lifted your finger up and brought the other out of his daze as you pondered on it for a minute.

Wait, did Luffy skip out of the tutoring session because of this idiot? Did Ace somehow convince him to dip it in order to help with his plans?

“Wait, Ace.”

He lifted his head up and mumbled, ‘hm?’ 

“Were you just planning this prank this entire time?"

"Why do you ask?" 

"I mean..." You scratched at your cheek awkwardly, "You weren't avoiding me?" 

Ace's expression morphed into one of shock. He pointed a finger to his chest as he asked, “You thought I was avoiding you?”

“Well, yeah.” You awkwardly scratched the back of your neck, “I mean-- I thought that what had gone down in the party may have… pushed you to ignore me.”

His face went slack for a moment before he clutched at his stomach, laughing loudly as he did. “You mean Luffy tackling me in the pool like an attack dog?” 

Ace released your hand before going over to ruffle at your hair affectionately. “You block-head, I would never voluntarily avoid you. In fact, the devil would have to shackle me down to keep me away from you.”

“That’s awfully… specific...” You laughed back at him. “You know,” You started, “I’m awfully curious. How do you have enough time to harass me? I mean, do you have 24/7 surveillance on my whereabouts or something? And what’s with all the theatrics? I mean, why the flaming letters?”

“What can I say. I love fire.” He booped your nose before backing off, going over to a nearby seat to relax into. “And what kind of a friend would I be if I didn’t brighten your life up with a little bit of harassment.”

“Do you mean literally or figuratively.”

He shrugged his shoulders, “Both?”

Ace then stood up and walked back to your side. “But enough about that. I came here to cheer you up. You’ve been looking awful sullen after the party.”

“Cheer me up?” You glanced up at him in confusion. 

What did he mean by cheer up? Oh wait, did he mean that whole ordeal with Kid? 

You sucked in your teeth. 

“Oh, about that.” You offered him a warm smile, “Like I told someone else, I’m already feeling better.”

The ravenette dramatically clutched at his heart as he fell on top of you, no doubt this was a part of his plan. “Oh, you wound me. I came here in the hopes of cheering you up, only to find out that someone else had tended to my dear Y/n!”

“Don’t be so dramatic, you big baby.” You laughed, pushing back at his firm body. Though he was slimmer than Kid, he was just as heavy and probably just as strong. 

“A big baby, me? If anything, you’re the baby. I'm always having to look after you."

“Hey, what do you mean about that?” You pouted up at him, earning yourself a wide grin. 

"Nothing, Peep Peep." 

  
  


The two of you conversed a while before you brought up the topic of his visit. He replied by saying that he had forgotten what he originally came for, effectively earning himself a slap to his arm. The man merely laughed at your pathetic attempt to wound him, but brushed it off when he explained that he had just wanted to pay you a quick visit. 

Once you realized that you were late for your next class, you offered the other a goodbye, but before you left, you reminded him that you still had his hat. He merely offered a smile and slipped a piece of paper into your hand. You had no doubt that it was his address. 

“Pay me a visit this evening if you’re so adamant on returning my hat.”

“Well, I could always just send Luffy to return it--”

“I’ll be expecting you!” The ravenette cut you short with a wave and whistled to his friends as he ran off. 

Before he could leave, you called out after him. The ravenette glanced back at you with a questioning gaze. 

"Need something, babe?" He yelled back, successfully gaining the eyes of everyone around. 

You flushed a bright red as the man laughed at your expression. He quite liked that look on you--it was cute.

“I--” You bit down on your lip. You lowered your voice to a whisper and mouthed, “I missed you too.”

His face morphed into one of confusion before he had realized what you had said. 

His smile grew tenfold, almost blinding you with how bright it was. It was almost like Luffy’s; just as beautiful as the sun, but not nearly as blinding. 

You crippled him. You absolutely destroyed him with that expression of yours. 

The man clutched at his heart and just barely prevented himself from falling to the floor. It was too cute. The bashful expression, the averted eyes, the flushed face.

If he could, he would have just kidnapped you right there and then, but as it was, they were currently surrounded by hundreds of other students. Now wasn't a good time for that. 

Still, he couldn't help the absolute joy that burst from him as you admitted that. Did you really mean it? Did you miss him? 

Oh, how he loathed the students that were around him right now. They were ruining such a perfect moment. 

As much as he wanted to run over to you and smother you with his affection, he knew you had a class to get to. So, as a parting gift, he shot you a wink before disappearing within the winding corridors. 

You fell to your knees and slapped at your flushed cheeks. 

What was wrong with you?

A thrill of excitement shot up your spine as you recalled all that happened. You hated how much you were acting like a smitten school girl, but at this moment, it didn't matter much to you.

You quietly screamed into the sleeve of your shirt before straightening yourself again, walking off with a straight face to your next class. 

____________

After you were finished with school, you made a one-way stop to your dorm and retrieved the cowboy hat before going through the campus. When the bus arrived at the waiting area, you boarded the one headed to Ace’s complex.

Once you were sat down, you fished around your pocket and retrieved the small piece of paper that he had slipped into your hand. 

Lifting it to the light, you smiled at the messy handwriting and the horrible flaming heart scribbled in the corner. 

‘That’s so him.’ You folded the crumpled paper and placed it neatly into your bag as you took out your phone. 

You contemplated on your developing friendship with Ace. Honestly, you had no idea how it had happened. It was just a whirlwind of chaos and confusion. One minute, you were being tackled to the floor and the next, he was pinning you to the wall and telling you that he missed you. You couldn’t say you didn’t feel the same, but the word ‘friendship’ didn’t sit right with you. Is that how you truly felt? Did you feel like a ‘friend’ to him or was it something more? Then again, you were never really on good terms with him either. Since the moment he met you, he treated you with nothing but scorn and disdain. And now, you didn’t know. What exactly did he feel? Did he want to be friends or…

You weren’t given the chance to finish the thought when the bus jiggled as it ran over a speed bump, nearly causing you to drop your phone into the crack next to you. The device hopped around your clumsy fingers before you finally got a hold of it, sighing in relief when it was secured in your hand. 

While the vehicle was en route to Ace’s place, for the next twenty minutes or so, you watched an episode of the walking dead to pass up the time. It gave you the chance to keep your mind off of things while you were waiting to get there. 

When you looked up every so often, you couldn’t help but sigh in marvel as the sunset peeked over the clouds. The sky was an orangey hue as it crossed the horizon, sending rays of gold and yellow across the cotton-candy atmosphere. This hue reminded you of Ace's hat...

You truly loved it here. Although you weren’t good with the cold, fall and winter were truly the best seasons of the year. That was the time where you could bundle up in warm clothes and sit next to a crackling fire with your friends. You could also watch movies together while slurping hot chocolate in massive blankets. 

You sighed in content. Maybe you could... one day. 

When the bus finally came to a stop, you pocketed your device and neatly filed after the other customers onto the road. 

You pulled at the drawstrings on your hoodie as a particular gust flowed over you, causing a wave of goosebumps to ripple up your spine. You involuntarily shivered, momentarily fazed by the sudden chill in the air. 

“Fuck, it’s cold.” You griped as you hobbled over to the waiting area like an elderly. How was Ace able to walk around in this temperature in nothing but a pair of shorts? You would never understand how he was able to withstand the cold. Maybe he was too idiotic to even feel it. 

You pulled up the location of his address on your GPS and blindly followed the directions until you stood in front of his house. 

“What the hell is this place?”


	23. The Devil Dogs (PT.2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I finally figured out how many chapters this fic is going to have. It might be a little more than the given number, but that's depending on if I add more stuff.

The house was... quite the sight. 

It was an ordinary campus apartment, save for a few details here and there. Although it looked like every other building, there was this certain charm--no, that wasn’t the right word. It had a certain look that certainly made it stand out from the rest. 

From the group of garden gnomes lined up around an odd tombstone and the toilet paper slung over the roof, you weren't sure what to make out of it. That, of course, wasn't the weirdest part of it either. The tree in front of the largest window had a random chandelier hanging from its branches and a discarded leaf blower dangling near the base of it. 

“Weird ass house.” 

That said, the most eye-catching part of the house was the layer of bright orange flames coating the outside of it.

It all screamed _Ace_ and as much as you hated to admit it, you absolutley loved the vibe it was giving. 

You stood in front of the entrance and hesitated to press the doorbell.

Maybe you should have called him to let him know ahead of time…

'Or you can just knock.' You thought to yourself. 

You gathered the courage and finally knocked on it, delivering three sharp thumps to the oak door.

When you didn’t hear anything, you contemplated on whether you wanted to press the doorbell. Would it be any better? You were sure you knocked load enough. Maybe he was in a different room.

"Maybe I should text him..." 

Just as you were going to, the door swung open, causing you to jolt forward in surprise. 

The boy on the other end stared at you wide eyed before grinning from ear to ear. 

“Oh, Y/n!" He chuckled, "As much as I’d like to let you in right now, I’m not sure if that's the best idea...” Ace remarked as he took in your shocked expression. 

“Uhh--” Your eyes traveled down to the pair of chihuahua’s gnawing on the ravenette’s leg, immediately sending you into a fit of laughter. 

Ace kneeled down to pet the black mongrel, but was met with a pair of razor sharp teeth instead. He immediately grimaced and backed away, surprised when another demon dog jumped up and attached itself to his pectoral.

The first dog quickly made it's counterattack and farted on his face as the other continued to gnash on his 'man boob'. 

“Not the nipple!” He growled out as the white chihuahua aimed for his chest. The male's nose scrunched up in disgust as he got a whiff of the revolting gas. 

"Quite the handful, no?" You cackled. 

"You know what, why don't you come over here and smell the fart. Then, you'll understand the pain I'm going through."

You clutched at your stomach as you laughed harder, unable to make any more noises with how hard you were howling. “I never saw you as a chihuahua kind of guy, to be honest.” You wheezed as you wiped a tear from your eye. 

“That’s because I’m not.” The ravenette plucked the two dogs from his body and held them high in the air. “I agreed to dog-sit them for a friend, but I’m really starting to regret it now.”

“You know, I always thought you were an animal-whisperer, but after this, I might just have to rethink that.”

“Don’t get me wrong, I am an animal-whisperer, but chihuahua’s are no animals, they are devils--devils wrapped up in the skin of a dog.” He shied away when the black chihuahua snapped at his face, its maw inches away from his nose.The ravenette berated the dog on its attitude before letting them down. 

“No argument there. Here, let me see one of them.” You extended your hand to one of them, only to reel it back when the white one growled at you. “H-H-Hey, buddy. I’m not here to hurt you.”

"I wouldn't do that..." Before the ravenette could hold the creature down, the black one of the bunch stared you dead in the eye as it circled around your shoe.

You wondered what it was doing. Was it going to accept your affection?

You regretted bending down to pet it, but soon realized that there was no time to back out now. You had sealed your fate. The little demon sat on your shoe and shat on it with a shit-eating grin. 

It smelled absolutely foul.

He quickly kicked it away with his back paws and scampered off to the other canine before you could tackle it. 

You were going to kill those little brats. You didn't care if you'd get sued for it, you were going to get back at those dogs. 

Ace cackled at your dead-pan expression as he went off to get some water and paper towels. “See, what did I tell you. Little demon dogs.” 

"No doubt about that." You grumbled as you carefully removed your feet from your boots. 

When he returned, he saw that you had already kicked off your shoes in front of the entryway. He shook his head and laid the materials in front of them, deciding that he could just clean them later. The least he could do was get the shit off of them after he made you come all this way to return his hat.

You stepped into the living room and marveled at the grand place. Just by the decoration alone, you knew Ace didn’t live alone. Marco definitely had a hand in the interior design. 

There were several bean bag seats splayed around the large 64 inch flatscreen plastered to the wall. Overhead were LED strips laid across the corners of the rooms and behind the TV to give the room a more homey ambiance. You were quite impressed with the interior of the house. It was certainly a step up to what you had witnessed outside.

On the walls were several pictures and posters. Unlike Kid though, none of them were playboy posters, something you had found quite amusing when you saw it for the first time.

Next to the various anime and video games posters were several pics. You stood in front of a particular photo, smiling when you realized that it was of the three ASL brother’s playing around with their poles. Oh, how you missed those times… 

Sabo and Luffy were reclined in the large, corner style couch, their legs kicked up on the furniture as they sipped on their orange juice. When Luffy caught sight of you, he tipped down his tinted glasses and nodded your way. 

“Y/n!” He waved you over. 

The mention of your name caught the attention of the other brother beside the ravenette.

Sabo saw you lingering near Ace and greeted you as well. “Oh, Y/n! I didn’t think you’d show up here.”

Luffy dragged you to the couch and cuddled deeper into the blanket he had covering him. Ace clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction as he lowered himself between the two of you.

“Oh, come on, why wouldn’t I? We’re all friends here, after all.” You frowned, “Besides, I came to deliver something to this idiot." You tapped on the ravenette's head. 

“Of course not. I just didn’t think you’d want to be near--” Sabo coughed into his shoulder as he said, ‘Ace’. 

“Haven't you heard the latest news?” You smiled cheekily, “We’re _friends_ now, aren’t we, dickles?” 

The ravenette imitated your grin and glanced over at the blonde. “Why, definitely, Peep Peep.” 

The second eldest brother recoiled at both of your reactions. Sometimes he was terrified at how easily the two of you could synch onto the same wavelength. 

He brushed the thought away and glanced over at you as you marveled at the wide tv. 

You noticed the show playing on-screen and frowned. You noticed that it was the show you had been watching with him for the past couple of weeks. “Luffy!” The youngest ravenette whined as you pulled at his cheek. “We were supposed to be watching the walking dead together!”

“But, Y/n, you were watching Naruto and I had no one else to watch it with." He shrugged nonchalantly as he added, "And Sabo and Ace offered to watch with me...”

You gasped and pointed an accusatory finger at the two brothers, immediately peeling away from the ravenette draped over you. He whined in discomfort as you pulled away, his hands going over to reattach himself. “Don’t be like that, Peep. You know I can’t say no to Luffy.”

“You guys are the worst! Luffy, how far did you get?”

“Uhh,” He rubbed at his chin thoughtfully, “I’m on season six.”

“You bastard!” You dramatically covered your eyes with your hand and passed out on the couch. 

Sabo looked down at you with an apologetic smile as he commented, “In our defense, you were busy with your new group of friends and Luffy was really eager to watch it.”

“Hey, they’re Luffy’s friends too! And besides, the both of you already have your own friend group!”

“Now, now, let’s not argue. We’re all friends here, aren’t we?” Ace placed his hands between the two of you. 

“Brothers.” Luffy corrected. 

“And sister!” You piped up.

Sabo and Luffy nodded while Ace shook his head vehemently. “I refuse to acknowledge you as my sister.” 

“Ace--” Sabo seethed, pointing a dangerous glare his way. 

He knew how much you hated that.

At any given chance he could get, Ace would use the opportunity to remind you that you weren’t apart of his ‘brotherhood’ and it was all because of some stupid idea he had in his head.

The blonde knew that it didn't stem from hatred, but rather, love. After all, it would have been weird for the ravenette to think of you as a ‘sister’ if he had feelings that weren’t... sibling-like towards you, but that didn't mean Luffy and Sabo didn't think of you as one. 

Sabo wasn't an idiot, he knew what his brother felt, but he didn't feel that it was his place to say anything.

“Fine, whatever...” You sighed, “It's not that big of a deal anyways.”

And honestly, it wasn't. You were fine if he didn't consider you apart of the brotherhood, because, in all honesty, you knew it would have been weird. Just being acknowledged by Sabo and Luffy was enough for you. 

“Good, because I’m not changing my mind on the matter.” Ace stubbornly crossed his arms, reigniting a flame of anger in your stomach.

You had intended to drop the matter as soon as it had concluded, but because of this back-talking idiot, you now felt as if you had to defend your dignity.

Without much hesitation, you climbed up on the coach and RKO’d the man dead in the stomach, causing him to drop back in shock at the sudden attack. 

“Why do you always get the last word, you freckled dick! Can't you just agree with me for once?” You wrapped your legs around his neck and squeezed, effectively trapping him to the ground. 

"And let you win? Hell no!" 

You grabbed a handful of hair and lightly yanked on it, causing the other to involuntarily shiver at the action. Before you had the time to process what had just happened, the other one moved to the offense. 

Much to your dismay, the man recovered fairly quickly. He make the split decision to hoist you by the knees and made his counterattack. “Now you’ve done it!” He grabbed your thighs and lifted you up, promptly 'German suplexing' you into a nearby bean bag with a smug grin. 

"How do you like that?" 

Luffy and Sabo watched as the two of you wrestled like children on the floor. 

“Want to get some popcorn?” The blonde asked. 

“No, I want something more filling. Can we order pizza?”

“Dominos or Pizza hut?”

“Dominos!” The youngest brother piped up, throwing his hands up in the air excitedly. 

“Sounds good. I’ll order right now. Just--,” The blonde’s eyes flitted over to the squabbling pair, “Just make sure they don’t kill each other.”

“It'd be more entertaining if they did.” Luffy chomped down on a bowl of strawberries as he continued to watch the show flashing on the TV. 

Sabo sighed in defeat and walked over to the kitchen, dialing up the nearest dominoes and placing his order. 

When the excitement of the whole ordeal died down, the two of you sat down on the floor of the living room and sighed in exhaustion. You really weren’t cut for wrestling for an extended amount of time, especially with someone like Ace; a man of muscle and stamina. As usual, the man had been the one to gain the upper-hand and secure you into a position surrender. Naturally, you declared defeat and accepted the extra point to Ace’s side of the ‘summer bummer tackle game’.

In all honesty, you should have known you weren’t going to win. 

Sighing in defeat, you laid back on the floor and raked a hand through your matted hair. 

“You’re a real jerk, you know that?”

Ace breathlessly laughed, his chest moving up and down as he took in several shallow breaths. “A handsome jerk.” He corrected you. 

“In your dreams.” You scoffed. 

Ace exhaled quickly through his nose, making a sound that sounded almost like a laugh. “Oh, I have no doubt that I’m handsome.”

“You’re conceited.”

“Oh, darling, just for you.” 

“Shut up.” 

Ace glanced over at you and gestured to the chihuahua’s staring you down from the next room. With a sigh, he stood up and patted himself down before extending a hand your way. “Come on, let’s go outside for a bit. The cool air should feel nice.”

You wiped the sweat from your forehead with your forehead. That sounded like a superb idea.

You leaned up and took his hand, heaving yourself into a standing position as the other plodded to the front to retrieve a couple of items. 

“Where are we going?” You asked. 

“Just around the block. I need to walk the dogs anyways. ‘Sides,” He glanced over at Sabo, who appeared almost unconscious with the way he was laying down on the couch.

You almost felt bad for exhausting him with your troublesome antics--almost being the keyword.

“I’m sure Sabo would appreciate it if we got out of the house for a bit.”

“I second that.” You walked over to your backpack and searched through it for your coat. When you opened the pack, your hand immediately connected with the cool leather of Ace’s hat. “Oh, that’s right!” You lifted the object and plodded over to the ravenette, promptly placing it over his head during his moment of distraction. 

“What are you doing--”

“Just returning your hat, dummy.” 

He slid his finger over the rim and flicked it. “I really missed this old thing.” Ace’s dark eyes flew back to you as a large grin split his face. “I knew I could count on you to take care of it.” 

“Good thing I didn’t throw it away.”

The ravenette found no humor in your joke, not that you cared much.

You plopped down on the couch and laid your head on Luffy's shoulder as he munched away on a snack. While you waited for the eldest brother to get ready for the walk, you decided to spend the time watching the show with your friend. 

“Hold up for a second, I need to grab something from my room.” 

You craned your neck his way as he departed from your side, slowly making it down the living room to his bedroom. 

For a solid minute, you didn’t hear anything from him, so you just turned back to watch the show with Luffy, but the moment you had, you heard a loud shriek, followed by the heavy thud of something falling.

The three of you in the main room whipped your heads over to the source of the sound.

“Ace, are you alright?” Sabo asked in concern. He placed the phone he was holding onto the counter and carefully tiptoed to the other end of the room. “Did one of the dogs bite off your nipple or something?”

“That'd be funny.” Both you and Luffy snickered. 

No less than ten seconds later, Ace ran out of his room and took up an aggressive stance, immediately throwing his hands up in a defensive position. “You’re in for it now! Sabo, where’s the bug spray?!”

“Bug spray?” The other echoed. 

What on earth was going on?

You grabbed the edge of the couch and lifted yourself into a standing position as you peered over the edge. Your heart immediately dropped when a cockroach came whizzing over your head. 

“What the hell--” Luffy evacuated the premises almost at once. "Not today, bitch!" He used your head as leverage and hopped over the couch, speeding over to Sabo’s side to grab a canister of bug spray. You yelped at the unexpected action and toppled to the floor like a sack of potatoes, staring at the flying demon with wide eyes. 

To your utter horror, the monster of an insect was almost the size of your fist. 

“How the hell did it get in here?” Sabo barely had enough time to duck down before it came tumbling down from the ceiling. 

“I don’t know?!” Ace screamed back, “Maybe one of the devil dogs brought them in or something! I knew I shouldn't have agreed to babysit them. Damn Marco, I'm going to push him for more money for this.” The other growled. 

The eldest ravenette ran into the kitchen and whipped open the compartments under the sink. He began scavenging the inside until he found the hidden canister of bug spray. 

Luffy tossed him a lighter and the man got to work creating a makeshift flamethrower in the middle of the house. Obviously, Sabo disagreed with the idea, but when push came to shove, he was often easy to convince. This was one of those times. 

"Ace, what the fuck!" You shrieked, "You can't just make a flamethrower in the middle of the house! You'll burn the whole fucking thing to the ground!"

"Would you rather be assaulted by an armada of cockroaches?"

"Why would there be more than one!? How filthy is your room to have attracted such a thing?"

"I told you! It was probably one of the dogs!"

"I have a hard time believing that!" You dove under the coach and hid there as the others ran around in circles trying to catch the pest. 

Ace flamed the insect as it flew over his head, missing it by millimeters as it continued its descent around the kitchen. 

They fought a long battle that lasted approximately ten minutes before the dreaded thing came your way, whizzing right over your head to land on your hair. 

You felt the blood rush down as your body switched into flight mode. All at once, your legs started pumping and before you knew it, you were rolling around on the floor. Stop, drop, and roll was your motto when it came to bugs. 

"Wait, let's talk about this for a second--"

“Hold her still!” Ace held the canister in front of your face and blew a small puff of fire at the insect. 

"Ace, you asshole!" 

As Luffy tried his best to keep you immobile, Sabo, ultimately, was the one to emotionally comfort you through this crisis. 

If there’s one thing you hated, it was insects and cockroaches were the kings of it. As much as you wanted to scream, you were also terrified that the bug would try to crawl into your mouth, which was the absolute last thing you wanted. 

When at last, Ace was able to defeat the creature, you were already half conscious and sweating by then. The world was fading out and you could smell the smoky aftertaste of your burnt hair.

You maneuvered yourself into a sitting position and patted the burnt edges of your hair. Thankfully, only a few strands had been sacrificed, all thanks to the ravenette’s superb ability to control fire. Well, he didn’t ‘literally control’ it, but he had a good aim. 

Ace picked up the burnt cockroach and tossed it into the trash before redirecting his attention back to you. 

You felt faint. 

“Hey, Peep Peep, don’t die on me.” The ravenette knelt by your side and lightly patted your cheek.

You groaned reluctantly, your hands moving up to slap him away. “I don’t think I’m going to make it.” You croaked. 

“Don’t say that,” Ace pleaded with you. “You’ll make it, don’t worry.” 

Sabo stood back and merely rolled his eyes at the dramatic scene. It was one cockroach, not an armada of insects. This was hardly a life or death situation. 

\--But, some people here seemed to think otherwise...

You lifted your hand to the lights above and whispered, “If I die, tell Zoro that I loved his swords with all my heart.”

The ravenette sat back on his haunches and shot you a disappointed glare. “Y/n, the last thing you should be thinking about is that marimo head.” 

“And what do you propose I think of when I die?”

“Definitely me--”

“Guys, guys.” Sabo cleared his throat, “Can someone just take the dogs out. I think all the action got them riled up." He gestured to the two salivating canines. "Knowing the two of you, you’re probably going to start arguing again, so before that happens, how about you get out of the house and get some fresh air.”

Without a moment of hesitation, Luffy pumped his fist in the air and shouted, “Sounds good! Let’s go!” 

“Fine, fine. Let me get ready first.” Ace lifted himself up and strolled over to the aggressive dogs, carefully lifting his hands to show that he meant them no harm. 

After ten minutes of barking and yelling, the ravenette finally got the canines to get into their collars. Though the three of you found the whole ordeal to be amusing, the other did not, seeing as it resulted in several deep scratches to male's legs and forearms.

But could you really blame yourself? I mean, how was someone who was over 180 pounds of pure muscle afraid of a dog that weighed barely more than 5? 

Still, he didn't find it to be amusing at all. 

Once he was finished preparing them, he kicked up his skateboard and nodded towards you. You peeled away from Luffy and bid the two other brothers goodbye as you headed out the door with the eldest. 

“On second thought, I’ll just stay and watch more episodes. I don't really feel like going outside right now!” The youngest ravenette hollered from his position on the couch. 

“Hey, Luffy.” You whined. “Don’t leave me alone with this--” You glanced towards the disapproving ravenette, “--with this crackhead!”

Luffy ignored you as he settled back into the couch, leaving you to fend for yourself against the eldest ravenette. He looped his arm around your neck and pulled you in, a smug grin on his face as he asked, “Aww, come on, Peep. I’m not so bad, am I?” 

“No, you’re intolerable! And you burned off my hair, so yeah, I'm sure they can understand why I don't want to be around you right now. You're a psychopathic arsonist! Also, I'm really fucking angry at you right now! What the hell am I supposed to do with my hair?!”

“That's quite the compliment! And I think your hair looks great!” He poked your forehead before moving before you to open the front door. 

"It wasn't supposed to be... And," You pointed a finger at him, "I'm never coming back here again."

"Hey, don't be like that, Peep." He slung his arm around your shoulders and smiled. 

"Get off and let's go." You grouchily commented as you touched the burnt edges of your hair again.

You were seriously going to kill that bastard in the future... 

“Don’t get yourself killed!” Sabo hollered from the kitchen.

“No promises!” Ace yelled back when the two of you went through entrance. Before your left, he looked over to you and asked if you skateboarded. When you said you didn’t, he quirked his brow and offered you his longboard, telling you that it was easier to use than the penny board. Although you were intrigued by the prospect of riding one, you ultimately refused. You’d rather not trip and die today. 

The ravenette attached the leashes to the chihuahuas’ and allowed them to pull at him while he rode the skateboard at his own leisure.

You had to admit, that was pretty smart of him. Instead of having to walk them like a normal person, he could just get them to run as they pulled at his skateboard. 

The two of you silently rode around the streets as you took in the descending sun. It was truly beautiful this time of the day. With the orange leaves raining from the trees and the warm rays of the sunset, you could enjoy the time silently beside the ravenette. 

In the silence, your mind drifted to other topics. 

You were quite curious about the male besides you. Though he liked to talk a lot, he never seemed to talk about himself, which was something you found quite intriguing. 

Maybe you could use this chance to ask him... 

As you rounded the neighborhood, you suddenly piped up, asking, “You know, you’ve never told what happened on your trip abroad...and I hope you know I'm still angry at you.”

“Curious about that, are you?” The boy pulled out a lollipop from his pocket and offered it to you. When you rejected it, he unwrapped it and popped it into his mouth, giving it a few good swirls before answering, “Honestly, not much happened, but there were a few good moments here and there.”

His sharp eyes wandered down to you, "You want to hear about them?"

He smiled warmly when you begrudgingly nodded. 

As soon as he started speaking, you found yourself immediately enthralled by his story. He spoke of the castles he had visited in Scotland and the various girls they’d been with over the course of the year. Though there were many parties, the ravenette said that he preferred to stay back in his dorm to study. You couldn’t really seem him as the dutiful student, but you brushed it off. 

It all sounded like magical, like something straight out of a book. As a child, you've always dreamed of traveling the world, but because of your father's hectic schedule, you never had the opportunity to.

The male beside you bristled.

“That sounds like so much fun.” You mused, your eyes dropping to the ground, “Maybe I should go abroad for a year.” 

As soon as you said that, the ravenette's stance on the subject did a quick 180. 

“Oh, what I said before was a complete lie. It was horrible and I hated it. In fact, I wish I had never done it." 

“Really, because you made it sound like a blast.” You wiggled your finger in his direction.

"Well, I changed my mind." He grabbed the wayward appendage and enveloped it within his warm hand. "You wouldn't like it, trust me."

"You're just saying that because you don't want me to go, aren't you?" You trailed off with a mischievous smile on your face. 

"Of course not."

You stepped away from the ravenette and shot him another shit-eating grin. "If you say so..." 

His popped his lollipop out and pointed it straight at you, "You're a sneaky brat, you know that?" You chuckled up at him as he said that.

"Of course not... And you deserved it. You fucked up my hair." You repeated his previous words, much to his annoyance. 

"Come 'ere." He stepped off his skateboard and placed it against a nearby curb. "Let's sit down a for a second. I think the dogs are tired." 

You glanced over to the panting canines and agreed. Maybe a little breather would do you good. 

The two of you sat down on a nearby curb as you watched the sun dip beneath the horizon. The stars were finally starting to peek from behind their dark veil, twinkling down at the pair of you in glee. 

Though neither of spoke, you didn't feel at all awkward at the silence that blanketed the atmosphere. In fact, it was quite comforting. The coolness of the night mixed in with the warmness of the other's presence made you feel pleasant. 

At one point, the other's phone buzzed, breaking the sereneness of the silence. The ravenette clicked his tongue as he lifted his device, an expression of annoyance etched onto his face. As soon as he saw the caller ID, his expression went stoney, as if it'd been the last person he wanted to see.

He excused himself for a minute as he disappeared around the corner, only to reappear ten minutes later. When you asked who had called, he offered a smile, but said nothing more on it. 

The lingering curiosity disappeared as soon as the weather grew colder. All you could think about was evacuating to a warm premises. 

One it grew chillier and the chihuahua's had recovered from their marathon, the two of you decided to go back home. When you made it back to the house, you were immediately greeted by the smell of food. Your salivary glands went on overdrive as you departed from the ravenette’s side and bounded over to the pizza.

"There aren't any cockroaches swarming the food, are there?" You castiously lifted the lid to one of the boxes. 

"No, Y/n, there aren't."

"One can never be too careful."

"Wise words from an idiot." Ace smirked.

You shot back a glare as you collected a plateful of 'za. 

"Sometimes, I wonder why I'm even friends with you."

"Because I'm charming?"

"Don't kid yourself."

You ignored the smirking ravenette and hopped onto the seat next to Luffy. 

“Don’t eat too fast or you’ll get a stomachache…” By the time that Sabo had warned you, you had already scarfed down three slices, burping quietly to release the buildup of gas in your stomach.

“Oops?” 

Luffy laughed loudly as he slapped your back. “I already ate a full pie!”

“Luffy!” Both Ace and Sabo knocked the back of their brothers' heads. 

“Leave some for us, you moron.” 

“What did you expect from him?” You shrugged. “That’s why we bought ten boxes, right?” 

“You're right." Sabo relented. 

Rather than eating on the blackened kitchen table, the four of you opted to sit on the beanbags and eat your meal while watching an episode of sesame street. Luffy had insisted on it, saying that the dogs were far too young to be watching something as gory as ‘the walking dead’. After much deliberation, Sabo agreed, but only because he knew he couldn’t talk his brother out of it.

So, there you were--munching on your fourth slice while squatting down next to Ace--who had two chihuahua’s latched onto each leg--and watching this stupid children’s cartoon. You weren’t complaining though. Perhaps this was the much needed rest your deserved, even if it was a little hectic. 

Once the dogs finally fell asleep and the moon peeked out of its dark curtains, the four of you switched lights off and huddled in the main room. Luffy draped blankets over the group before settling right back next to you. 

When you were younger, the four of you had this tradition where you'd wait for the parents to leave before taking out the games. There was this trepidation you felt when you snuck away to game with the trio. It was exhilarating, not to mention entertaining. 

\--But these things were never meant to last forever...

It was fun while it lasted, but when the two eldest brothers grew up, you stopped doing it. It had saddened you greatly, but there wasn't much you could do about it.

You glanced over at the brothers, smiling as you did. 

Maybe you game together once more... 

For the rest of the night, you all played on Ace’s playstation as you passed the time, laughing and cheering in contentment while you pushed away the stresses of your outside lives. 

* * *

If one were to peek through the window, all they would see were four friends enjoying the night together… and two devil dogs sleeping soundly on the burnt table...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reason why I submitted two chapters is because I know I'm going to be extremely busy for the next week. Not only do I have exams coming up, but I also need to decide what kind of major I'm going for. 
> 
> I promise to upload the next chapter sometime next week though!


	24. Job Hunting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter! I wanted to publish something before plunging into the weekend!
> 
> Happy Friday!!

You were all smiles the next day as you merrily strolled into your next class, perturbing everyone around. Even Nami, who was normally desensitized to your whiplash-like moods was offset by your sudden change. What had happened to make you so happy? 

That was for you to know and for others to wonder, though. You were quite content to keeping it to yourself. 

You laid your head on your desk and closed your eyes as your teacher droned on about the subject of tragedy. 

Well, that certainly piqued your interest. 

You cracked an eye open and focused on the front board. 

“And where can we find examples of tragedies?” The Professor asked. 

“Romeo and Juliet?” A student responded. 

“Exactly!” 

“The Titanic?” Another student piped up. 

“Another great example! All are famous pieces of literature, but can someone tell me the exact definition of it?”

‘Tragedy?’ You mused.

What was a tragedy to you? Was it the loss of a friend or the death of a loved one? 

That question reverberated in your mind even as your class ended, sending the thoughts spiraling in your head as you walked to the nearby university cafe. 

As soon as you arrived, the thought was wiped from your mind, instantly replaced with the worry of your interview.

A couple of weeks ago, you had seen a ‘ _Now Hiring!_ ’ sign plastered to the front, which was quite convenient considering you were out a job. Without a constant flow of cash, you were struggling to make ends meet and you knew you couldn’t rely on the small amounts Mihawk sent you. Though he had more than enough to provide for you, it was still humiliating to keep relying on him. After all, you were an independent adult now. Providing for yourself was a given!

You straightened the ends of your skirt and tidied yourself in front of the the window before strolling in, a confident smile on your face. 

“Hello, I’m here for the job interview.” You asked the nearest clerk. 

When they looked up, the two of you exchanged shocked looks as you recognized the other. 

“Monet?” You were quite surprised to see her. 

“Oh, umm--,” She offered a sheepish smile, “You’re Ace’s friend aren’t you? I apologize, I don’t quite remember your name.”

“No, no, that’s quite alright.” You fervently waved your arms and reassured her, “I don’t blame you, I tend to stick to the background so it’s hard for others to even remember who I am. I’m Y/n, nice to meet you.” You extended your arm to her. 

She took it into hers and shook it briefly before asking why you had come. You stated that you had signed up earlier for an interview for the job here. Once you had cleared the air between the two of you, she immediately brightened and pointed you to a nearby seat.

"What are the odds!" She gasped.

"I know right." You replied with a smile. 

Perhaps her presence would be a good thing. Now you didn't have to worry about working alone! You had someone to help you with the ropes, so there was nothing to stress out about anymore. 

“My manager should be out in a sec. Just make yourself comfortable and wait here for a moment.” 

“Sounds good, thank you!”

When the manager arrived, you greeted her with a warm smile and a cool demeanor, almost immediately impressing her. 

Thankfully for you, the interview had gone without a hitch. Not only did you have a stable source of income, but you also had another place to make new friends.

Once the manager assigned you your shifts and your uniform, she dismissed you for the day with a curt bow. You returned the gesture and walked over to the worker in front, offering her a small smile. 

“Y/n, hey!” She stopped you before you had the chance to depart. “I was wondering, if you weren’t busy, would you want to hang out sometime? I mean, it wouldn’t be too bad if I got to know more of Ace’s friends, would it?”

She wanted to hang out with you? It wasn’t that it was weird, but you had a feeling that she didn’t get the greatest impression from you. Maybe you had just misinterpreted everything. Maybe she actually wanted to be friends with you. 

“No, no, of course not!” You said with a smile, “I wouldn’t mind hanging out sometime. Here,” You opened your contacts and slid your phone over the counter. She picked it up and plugged in her digits before giving it back, a feline-like smile on her face as she asked, “Would sometime next week work?”

“Yeah, of course! Anytime is fine.”

She heaved out a relieved sigh. “I’m glad. Any friend of Ace’s is a friend of mine.”

“Great! Honestly, I'm just glad that I'm going to be working with someone I know.”

“Oh, girl, me too.” Monet splayed her manicured fingers over yours as she pulled you in closer. “Well, I suppose I’ll be seeing you from here on out.”

“Of course, yeah.” You awkwardly scratched the back of your neck as you ran out of ideas to talk about. You weren’t the best in conversations when it came to strangers, even if they were friends of people you knew. Of course, you tended to get over the awkwardness rather quickly, but it all depended on how open the person was.

Just as you wrapped up your conversation with the other, your phone buzzed. With a quick wave and a tight-lipped smile, you fished your device out of your pocket and exited the cafe. 

**Mugiwaras**

**Luffy:** Acaaec **\--**

_Delivered at 12:31 p.m._

_Read at 12:45 p.m._

**Nami:** Typo?

 **Robin:** Probably an accidental text.

 **Y/n:** Guys!

 **Sanji:** Y/n-swannnn~

 **Y/n:** Hi, Sanji.

 **Y/n:** Anyways--

 **Y/n:** I finally got a job!

 **Zoro:** Finally.

 **Sanji:** Says the guy who doesn’t have one. 

**Zoro:** Shut tf up. 

**Sanji:** N.O.

 **Luffy:** Let’s celebrate by going out!

 **Franky:** OOOOOO~! That sounds fun! Let’s do it!

 **Robin:** Franky, honey, I don’t think a job warrants a celebration. 

**Luffy:** It does in my book!

 **Nami:** I’ll agree to it…

 **Nami:** But only if Y/n is the one buying!

 **Y/n:** Hey-- >:( 

**Y/n:** Don’t you have a rich boyfriend? Why are you leeching off of me? 

**Y/n:** I haven’t even worked a day! I don’t have any money!

 **Nami:** Irrelevant. 

**Zoro:** I want sake if we’re going out. 

**Y/n:** I never even agreed to this!

 **Luffy:** Can we go to a buffet? Nami's suggestions are ass. Their portions are always too small!

 **Nami:** It’s for people with REFINED taste. You wouldn’t understand. 

**Y/n:** Guys, wait--

 **Sanji:** Of course he wouldn’t, he’s a blockhead. 

**Luffy:** Am not! I just prefer to eat a lot of bad food than a small portion of good food. 

**Usopp:** He’s won, but at what cost? 

**Chopper:** Probably flavor. Buffets usually serve mediocre meals. They're often bland and textureless. 

**Luffy:** Flavor doesn’t matter to me, only size does.

 **Nami:** Of course it doesn’t…

 **Zoro:** Portion doesn’t matter. As long as they serve alcohol, I’ll go. 

**Y/n:** I never even agreed to this. :(

 **Y/n:** Nami, make your boyfriend pay. 

**Nami:** I can’t…

 **Usopp:** Why?

 **Nami:** I broke up with him a week ago. Don’t you guys remember?

 **Robin:** Oh my.

 **Franky:** I don’t think any of us knew that. 

**Y/n:** I literally live with you, Nami. 

**Y/n:** How have I not heard of this?

 **Nami:** Probably because you’ve been daydreaming about Ace. 

**Luffy:** WHAT.

 **Zoro:** Lmao.

 **Usopp:** I KNEW IT. 

**Y/n:** Guys, it’s not what you think--

 **Chopper:** I CALL SECOND!

 **Franky:** SUPER~ Dramatic. Guys, it isn’t a big deal. 

**Y/n:** AGREED! Let’s change the topic.

 **Zoro:** No complaints here. This topic is boring. 

**Y/n:** Thank you. 

**Nami:** :( I wanted to talk more about it. 

**Robin:** Same, I’ve been quite curious. 

**Sanji:** Too much information to process. 

**Sanji:** 1st, Nami’s boyfriend was a douche.

 **Sanji:** 2nd, he wouldn’t understand her like I do. 

**Sanji: 3r** d, why the hell is Y/n-chan thinking about that freckled moron? 

**Sanji: 4** rth, when the hell did this all happen?

 **Nami:** Not important. 

**Y/n:** Definitely not important. 

**Usopp:** Anywayssss, are we going out or not?

 **Y/n:** No, definitely not. 

**Y/n:** Unless... 

**Usopp:** Unless?

 **Y/n:** Unless Zoro gives me on of his swords.

 **Zoro:** Hell no.

 **Y/n:** Forget what I said.

 **Nami:** We were all kidding. I don’t think any of us can afford to go out right now. 

**Chopper:** I can’t. I have an important exam coming up. 

**Usopp:** Same. 

**Y/n:** Phew

 **Zoro:** So, no alcohol? 

**Nami:** No, you alcoholic addict. 

**Luffy:** She woke up and chose violence. 

**Y/n:** Nah, fr. 

**Sanji:** Alright, I’m dipping first. Gotta get to my next class. 

**Robin:** Same here, unfortunately. 

**Chopper:** Alright, I’m logging off then. 

**Usopp:** Bye!

 **Y/n:** _Arrivederci_! 

Before you slid out of the convo, you hovered over Ace’s icon, briefly debating on whether you wanted to click it or not. After a moment of thought, you decided on it. 

What’s the harm?

After all, you were quite curious on Marco's reaction to his disastrous home. 

**Dickles**

**Y/n:** Yo, freckles.

_Deliver at 1:02 p.m._

_Read at 1:02 p.m._

**Ace:** PEEP--

 **Ace:** Need something, babe?

You leaped back at the sudden response. 

“Well, that was fast.”

**Y/n:** Don’t call me that. :)

 **Y/n:** Nah, I just decided to txt you bc I was curious about something. 

**Ace:** Penny for your thoughts? 

**Y/n:** About that table we burnt the other day…

 **Y/n:** Did Marco beat your ass?

 **Ace:** … 

**Ace:** You worried for me? <3

 **Y/n:** LMAO

 **Y/n:** No.

 **Ace:** So cruel. ;-;

 **Ace:** He said it cost over a thousand. 

**Y/n:** The table?

 **Ace:** Yup.

 **Ace:** Who the hell buys a table over a 1000. 

**Ace:** Absurd. 

**Y/n:** Someone like Nami.

 **Ace:** Righttt. Her. 

**Ace:** So, is there something you need from me?

 **Y/n:** Umm... No?

 **Y/n:** That was all.

 **Ace:** Wait, what?

 **Y/n:** Well, that’s all I wanted to know. I’m good now! Peace!

 **Ace:** WAIT. 

**Ace:** That’s really it? You’re breaking my heart! 

**Ace:** The first time we text and you ask me if I got my ass beat.

 **Y/n:** Well, I mean…

 **Y/n:** Yeah?

 **Ace:** :()

 **Ace:** You still in class right now?

 **Y/n:** Not at the moment.

 **Y/n:** Just copped a job!

 **Ace:** Congrats! Does that mean you’ll buy me food from now on?

 **Y/n:** Absolutely not. :) 

**Y/n:** Only Luffy. <3

 **Ace:** I find offense in that.

 **Ace:** Think about me for once. T_T

 **Y/n:** Why would I?

 **Ace:** You’re an idiot, you know that?

 **Y/n:** HEY.

 **Y/n:** I’m going now! 

**Y/n:** And there’s nothing you can do to stop me!

 **Ace:** I didn’t think I could.

 **Ace:** We’ll talk some other time. 

**Ace:** Have a good day, _cara._ ;)

 **Y/n:** HEY--

_Delivered at 1:12 p.m._

“--Always has to get the last word in.” You dumped your phone in your bag, “Jackass.” 

Despite his nonchalant attitude, you couldn’t help but smile at your small interaction with him. Today was definitely your day. You bagged a job, got a new friend, and even texted that idiot for the first time. 

You quickly got back to your dorm and greeted Nami before toppling into your bed, snuggling into your pillow as the stresses of your day drained away. 

Nami stripped out of her outfit and dumped herself next to you as well, eliciting a loud groan from you as her weight pressed onto you. 

“Nami, get off.” You complained as you pressed your fingers into her sides to get her to move. When it didn’t work, you shifted to your side and glared up at her. 

The taller ginger wrapped her arms around you and sighed. “Just grant me this short reprieve, please?” 

You reluctantly relented, but not before moving around one last time to get into a more comfortable position. 

After a moment of silence, you piped up, “What happened?”

"Nothing happened."

You shot her a unconvinced look. 

She turned her head around and murmured, “I’m just tired. Let me lay here for a second.” 

"Nami~" You brushed your fingers through her hair, instantly relaxing her tense body as she melted into your touch. "You know that I know that what you're saying is bullshit. What happened?" 

'Could this be because of what we talked about in the group chat?' You wondered. Was it about her ex boyfriend?

You perked up and pulled away from her for a second. “Is it about your boyfriend?”

The ginger mumbled something incoherent as she rubbed her face into your sheets. 

“Oh, come on, Nami. I didn’t think you were that attached to them.”

“I’ll have you know that he was filthy rich.”

You pushed her away with a laugh. “You’re a dirty thief, Nami. So, you're saying that you're more attached to their purse than them?” 

She pushed right back at you, a stern look to her face as you rolled away laughing.

“Look, in all honesty.” You moved around so that you were facing her. “I think Sanji's better than the rest of them.”

"Where did that come from?" She mumbled. 

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Nami. You know he'd treat you better than all your other boyfriends." You pushed at her again, "Hey, look at me. I'm being serious." 

Nami heaved out a heavy sigh before maneuvering her body so that she was facing the ceiling. With a small smile, she replied with, “I don’t know, Y/n.”

“Look, Nami, I’ve seen how he looks at you.” You laid your head on your arm and glanced over at her, a thoughtful expression on your face. “He’s good for you, unlike those dickheads you dated.”

“You’re one to talk.” She grabbed hold of your cheek and pulled at it, causing you to hiss out in pain as you pressed your cool hands to the throbbing flesh. “How can you notice Sanji’s feelings if you can’t even tell Ace’s? Or Law's, for that matter?”

You cocked your head in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“You're really are an idiot.”

“Why is everyone calling me an idiot today?” You threw your hands up in exasperation. 

Was there something you were missing? And what did she mean by Torao? Was he keeping something from you? With that boy, nothing was obvious. In fact, he was better at concealing his emotions than your father, which was quite the feat. 

“Oh, nothing.” Nami moved herself again until she was comfortable. “I don’t really feel like talking about this right now.

“But, Nami--”

“I don’t want to hear talking, Y/n.” She pinched your nose, effectively cutting off your words as she pressed your pillow to your face. 

"Fine." You pushed the pillow away and pressed your face into your sheets. 

A good nap would do you some good. 

After a moment of fidgeting, you fell into a comfortable state of rest, your eyes drooping heavily as the anvils of sleep overcame you. It didn’t help that Nami’s warm body was pressing into yours either. It felt so… warm and soft, like that of a mother’s touch. 

You sank into her embrace and fell into the darkness of sleep.

_________________

You awoke later that day, your eyes crusted over with the remnants of sleep. You rubbed away the drowsiness before climbing out of your bed. By that time, Nami had already gone. 

You glanced up at the clock.

Three minutes past four. 

She must have slipped out while you were still out cold. You assumed that she went out shopping with Robin to get over the breakup with her prior boyfriend. 

With a wide yawn, you padded over to your desk and flipped through your calendar. Your eyes widened when you landed on the circled _6_ over October. 

"Torao's birthday..." You chewed on your lip as you thought on it for a moment. 

Since you had nothing to do today, you decided it'd be a good time to buy his gift. 

Maybe today was the best time to do it, since you were free of your duties. Plus, there was no telling if you had something to do next week. 

With a quick flourish of your wrist, you wrapped yourself around a large jacket and a scarf. When you deemed it enough for your short trip, you grabbed your bag and left the dorm, making sure to lock it on the way out. 

You made your way to the bus stop and held your pass out to the driver when he came. As soon as he scanned the small card, he allowed you to situate yourself in the vehicle. 

With a small smile and a nod, you sat down on the furthermost seat in the front. 

As the bus rolled out of the campus, you leaned against the thin pane separating yourself from the outside and pondered on what you'd get him. 

You were sure Bepo, Shachi, and the others would get him something, so there was no need to splurge on his gift. That said, you didn't have enough money to get him something expensive, so you needed to buy something on the cheaper spectrum. Maybe you should have asked your father to smith a cool sword for him or something...

With a sigh, you sank deeper into your seat and pulled up your scarf to keep your head warm from the chilly atmosphere of the bus. 

As the months grew shorter, so did the days, meaning that the sun would descend far quicker during these times than in the summer. 

Had you woken up earlier, you probably could have gone out to buy the gift, but as it was, you hadn't thought to do it, so now you were left to stumble around the dark for it. 

The ride to downtown would be about an hour away from campus, which would give you approximately an hour of light before it would all go dark. So you needed to plan your time accordingly.

You had no time to spare. 

Once the bus stopped and you stepped out, you beelined straight for the nearest shop, immediately entering it to look around.

Unfortunately for you, the first few didn't have what you were looking for--not to say you knew what you were looking for, but you knew they weren't his style. It's just, none of the merchandise looked like something Torao would like.

In all honesty, you had no idea what he liked.

Would he want a medical textbook?

Probably not.

Maybe some earrings like Zoro? 

No, that wouldn't work.

\--He probably doesn't like flashy earrings like Zoro...

With that mind, you continued to scour the plaza for the perfect place. 

_________

You wandered around the square for another thirty minutes before sitting down on a nearby bench in defeat.

You really should have given yourself more time to prepare for this. Torao was a difficult person to please, after all. A simple gift wouldn't suffice for him. 

You watched in boredom as your breath curled in the chill air, instantly evaporating the moment it left your mouth.

It would have been easier if it were Luffy, but with the grumpy ravenette, it was much more difficult. Why couldn't he just accept a bouquet of steaks? That would have made things so much easier on your part. 

You thought on it for a second before shaking your head.

Of course he wouldn't. He was nothing like Luffy...

You glanced up when the smell of freshly baked bread hit your nose. It smelled absolutely divine to your starved senses.

You were instantly reminded of your hunger as soon as the pangs of pain shot through you. 

When had you last eaten?

Probably not before the interview, you garnered. 

With another glum sigh, you ran your hand over your stomach, attempting to quell the hunger for a moment longer.

You had neither the time nor the money to expend on your meal. You came here for one thing and one thing only, and that was Torao's gift.

With that in mind, you stood back up and explored the square again. 

After another round of unsuccessfulness, you sat back on your bench and hunched over. 

What was the point? It was getting dark you were dreadfully hungry. Maybe you could use what little you had to purchase a meal on the way home. 

You could go hunting for his gift some other time...

When you were about to give up, a woman and her child stopped before a store, her daughter pointing fervently to something inside. 

You glanced up in curiosity and found yourself intrigued by the line of mannequins behind the thin glass. 

For an instant, you found yourself in a daze, staring straight at a black coat.

You stood up and stopped in front of the clothes shop and stared at the mannequin displayed in front. It donned a long, dark overcoat inlined with soft fur that went all the way down to the ankles. The collar was designed to pop up right before the chin, which allowed for easy movement and breathability. 

All in all, it appeared quite comfortable, especially for this kind of weather, and it seemed like the perfect gift for Torao!

You could definitely see him wearing this. 

The real question was, how expensive was it?

The bell above the door jingled as you stepped in, alerting the clerk to your presence. The teenager working popped his head up from the counter and offered you a warm smile before asking, "How may I help you today?"

"Oh," You pointed to the jacket displayed up front, "I was just wondering about the cost of that jacket." 

He craned his neck to the object of interest and perked up. 

"This is a limited edition, so I'm assuming it's quite expensive. Hold up, let me check it real quick." He lifted the board separating the counter and stepped out to check the price. When he flipped the tag, he gave a knowing nod and returned back to the front. "Aha, just as I thought."

You cringed at his response.

Was it really that expensive?

"Would you like to purchase it, miss?"

You went around to the front and looked at it again. Would it be worth the hassle? Even if you bought it, would Torao even like it? I mean, if he didn't, it would have all been for naught and you'd be short on cash. It'd just be a lose-lose situation to you. 

You hesitantly opened your wallet and cringed at the meager amount of money it held. It was worth at least half a month of pay...

You looked over at the cashier and asked, "Can I see it for a second." 

He nodded eagerly before plucking the coat from its stand and handing it over to you. "Of course! Is this a gift for someone?"

"Something like that, but I'm not sure I'll be able to afford it."

"Well, if you can't, we always have a variety of other clothes here." He gestured towards the array of racks stacked against the side of the store.

"I'll check around a little more before deciding. Thank you for your help though."

The teenager gave a quick smile before busying himself behind the counter once again. You left the front and took a trip around the shop, occasionally brushing your fingers across the various clothing. Although they were cute, they weren't as fashionable or as warm as the coat. However, what they lacked in style, they made up for in price. These were certainly more affordable than the cotton overcoat. 

Yet, you still couldn't help but feel drawn to that particular piece of clothing.

You knew in your heart of hearts that the coat was the perfect gift, albeit a little expensive. 

You reluctantly went back to the front and offered the cashier a weak smile. 

Your hesitance hadn't gone unnoticed by him. 

He sighed in exasperation before lowering his voice, "Miss, let me tell you one thing." He leaned in and looked around as he nodded towards the doll dangling from your bag, "Tell ya' what, you toss in that limited edition Obito figurine and I'll cut the price in half."

He shrugged off the faux customer service facade and slipped into his normal attitude. 

"In half?" You stared at him wide-eyed.

Although it took you months to get your hands on the doll, you weren't that adverse to giving it away, especially when it meant getting a good deal out of it. 

"What's the catch?" You narrowed your eyes.

"No catch. My boss is a dick and he's been nagging me for weeks to get rid of the coat. No one wants to get it because of its price, but I'm willing to haggle it away for some good merch, you get me?" 

You gave him an unimpressed glare before returning your attention to the coat.

"I'm telling ya', you'll regret not taking my offer." 

You had a feeling you were going to regret not getting it... 

"Won't you get in trouble for this?" You asked. 

"Not if you keep your mouth shut. I got my ways for making up for the cost." 

"You positive?"

"Positive." 

"Then--," You bit down on your lip, wrenched your eyes closed, and tossed a wad of cash to the teen. "You son of a bitch, you got a deal." 

He eagerly slid it into the cash register before shooting you a gleeful grin. "Nice doin' business with ya', miss." 

Once you handed him the doll, you strolled out of the shop with a large shopping bag in your arm and a smile to accompany it. 

Now you had a job, a new friend, and the perfect gift for the gloomy ravenette!

Today was definitely your day.


	25. Hello Again

You checked your watch and blew out a raspberry in boredom when you realized only three minutes had passed since you clocked into work. You hadn’t actually remembered how bad working part time in a cafe was until you had done it again. You weren't in any position to complain though, given the fact that this job was keeping you financially afloat.

You heaved out a heavy sigh and got to work on preparing a new order for a customer who had just entered. 

When your other co-worker rounded the corner, you perked up and offered her a knowing smile. She caught your look and came to the front. 

“You seem to be doing fairly well considering that it’s your first day here.” She commented on your lack of nervousness as a new worker here. The way you had walked around with relative ease and a familiarity unknown to a newbie must have been what she had noticed. 

“Yeah, well, not my first rodeo. I worked in a cafe similar to this one back in high school. Although, that cafe was much less crowded than this one.”

The mint-head did one of those exhale-laughs as she began preparing a customer's order. “Can’t disagree with that. Without their daily intake of coffee, these caffeine addicted fiends might go insane. Can you really blame them though? This is college for fucks sake. Without something keeping you grounded, you might as well go off the deep end.” She shrugged. 

“No doubt about that.” You chuckled, “but replace caffeine with strawberry milk and you’ve got me. Without my intake of it, I usually go insane.” 

The other gave you an odd look when you suggested that, as if picking strawberry milk was somehow worse than choosing coffee, which was adjacent to comparing an android to an iphone. It wasn't that they were bad, necessarily, it was just a matter of preference, something that she didn't seem to comprehend. 

“You mean to tell me that you’d pick an artificial, sugary beverage over coffee? That’s a no no for me.” 

“Any day.” You shot back. “Besides, I don’t see any real problem with that. Plus, it’s healthier in the long run." 

“Humor me for a second,” Your co-worker turned on you and clasped her hands together, giving her an authoritative appearance as she asked cooly, “So, you can’t hold your liquor, and you can’t down caffeine--what exactly can you stomach?”

You gave off a nervous laugh, "What does that have to do with strawberry milk?"

You could have sworn her words had a condescending tilt to them, but you didn't want to look that far into it for fear of misunderstanding her words. Perhaps there was another meaning to them, one that was less derogatory and more inquisitive. 

“Woah, that came out of the blue,” You exclaimed with slight confusion, “Where did that come from? And, to be blunt, I don’t recall drinking alcohol recently.”

“I don’t mean recently, sweetie.”

You instantly knew what she was referring to when she imitated the way you had fallen into Kid's arms when you had gone unconscious. 

“Oh, you mean when I passed out at Ace's party. About that, I’m just not good with alcohol in general, but I...” 

_I wanted to wipe away the memory of those boys..._

“I just wanted to have some fun.” You plastered on a small smile to convince the other girl for your reasons on splurging on your alcohol intake that night. 

You looked down hesitantly as the memories of that night rose to the forefront of your mind, reminding you of the terrible incident that had occurred that day. 

“I guess my body can’t tolerate strong substances.” You laughed half-heartedly. You weren’t ashamed that you couldn’t down them, but now that she brought it up, you were starting to feel slightly self-conscious. Was it bad that you were intolerable to these things? Seeing as how your friends were champs when it came to alcohol, it made you feel as if you weren't good enough. And in all honesty, the way Monet was talking down to you made you feel like a child. 

Though you tried to tone down your uncomfortableness at the odd situation she had put you in, your unconscious fidgeting and wandering eyes hadn’t gone unnoticed by her. 

“Oh, honey. I didn’t mean to offend you. I was just wondering if you were easily susceptible to those kinds of things. Honestly, it’s no big deal. It just confused me a little.”

“Confused, how so?” 

Maybe you were reading into this whole thing wrong.

“Well, pardon me if I say this, but I didn’t think Kid was the kind to surround himself with people--”

“Like me?” You finished her sentence off. " Don't get me wrong, Kid was just at the wrong place at the wrong time. He just happened to run into me at the end of the party, which resulted in him having to take me back to his place. I can see how you might think that we're friends because of that one incident, but we're really not. In fact, I'd say we're more acquaintances than friends, but I get how you might think that I'm 'friends with him.” 

At your words, your co-worker seemed to deflate in relief, as if you'd discredited some restless concern in her. 

“Oh, is that so?" She shrugged, "Appearances alone, you look much closer than you seem to be telling me."

"I can see how it'd look like that, but it's all just 'appearances'. In reality, I'm much closer to Killer than I am to Kid." 

"Ah, that makes much more sense." She hesitantly went to work picking at an espresso machine that didn't need cleaning as you went to the front to take a new order.

When you were finished writing down the customer's request, Monet went over to your side and apologized for her disorderly attitude. She wanted to know if she seemed rude at any point during the conversation, -- which she was, but you weren't going to let something so minute destroy your budding friendship, especially when it concerned boys. Everyone had their slip ups from time to time, why should you hold it over her when you also had similar situations with others. It'd be hypocritical if you did. 

You directed your attention away from her when you noticed that the can of straws was empty. You went to work under the cabinets as you looked for a new box of them. Monet leaned against the counter and pointed out to the container on your left as she apologized again.

You brushed it off with a smile and explained that it was a simple misunderstanding, that there was no need to look any deeper into it. Everyone had their moments, after all.

She seemed to melt with relief at your kind words, immediately getting to work with the newest customer with a renewed pep to her step. 

You deducted that the reason for her odd questions was because of her wariness to your connection with Kid. Perhaps all she wanted to know was whether you were with him or not, in the sense that you were dating. That would certainly explain the tense exchange you had before. 

The conversation between the two of you took a very different turn once the air had been cleared. Because of your previous discussion with her, when you asked about her relationship with Kid, she went off on a tangent and gushed about him, which you found to be quite interesting, considering that it was Kid you were talking about. Odd as it may be, you were glad that he had finally found someone who could withstand his brash personality. Not to say he was a bad person, but he wasn’t the easiest to deal with, especially with the way he acted around others.

You didn't know when Monet’s relationship with the red-head had started, but you guessed it was around the time of the party, given that that was when you had first met her. It was surprising to hear of her infatuation with the red-head though, considering that she looked more like the type to go after Torao--but that was a topic for another time...

As more customers began flooding the cafe after school, the two of you ended up ceasing your conversation and went back to working behind the counter. 

You diligently chipped away at the time by providing the customers their orders and cleaning up around the area for the next worker. Monet occasionally came around to do the bare minimum and whatever the manager had left to her. She mostly kept to herself as you idly waited by the front, giving you the odd smile when she caught you staring. When it came time for you to clock out, you folded your apron and bid the other goodbye as you left the workplace with a curt wave. The mint-head merely nodded before rushing to the back, as if she had remembered something she needed to do.

______________

Once you were finished with your shift at work, you returned to your dormitory and packed what you needed before heading straight to the library with only one thought in your head -- _your project with Drake._

The name _X Drake_ brought about several memories of your most recent encounter with him. For one, you remembered the warning against Torao and the tense exchange they had with each other. 

You still had no idea what he had meant by his warning, but you knew you had to take it with a grain of salt. Maybe he had some unresolved beef with the ravenette? That could certainly explain his hostility to the other, but that didn’t explain why he needed to rope you into it. What was the point of warning you against your friend? What was the purpose of it? Was it to pull the two of you apart?

While Trafalgar was the quiet and closed-off type, you didn’t think that he had any shocking secrets--but the longer you thought about it, the more you started to doubt your previous statement. 

There was no way he was hiding something from you, was he? After that conversation with him the other day, you'd think he had nothing more to share, but maybe that wasn't true--maybe there was something else he was keeping under wraps, something he didn't want to tell you... 

Although you wanted to ask Drake about it, you weren’t sure if he’d be willing to provide you with an answer. After all, if there was a man more mysterious than Torao, it would have to be Drake. That man was as tight-lipped as a clam over water, he'd never spill his secrets willingly. 

You decided, with much reluctance, that you’d give it up for now and hope that you’d get more answers in the future. You already had enough worries as is, you didn’t need another one about Torao on your list. 

With a shake of your head and a weary sigh, you pushed the thoughts aside and decided to focus more on your project. You had a deadline to make up for, after all. 

You walked into the library and spotted your classmates by the far end of the building. By the looks of it, they had already been there for awhile, probably waiting for you to arrive so that they could start. 

You met up with your other group-mates and immediately went to work on your assignment. Drake took the lead and directed the group as he diligently assigned the four of you to the different sections of the project. Once he was finished explaining the parameters of it, he left you all to work, promptly getting to work on his own portion. 

The group quietly did their work for the next two hours, quickly making do of their own piece. Likewise, you were almost done with yours when the sun started setting and the other students began filing out of the library.

When Drake deduced that we could do the rest on our own time, he wrapped up the session and ended with a quick congratulations to the group. 

As everyone began packing their things away, the tall ginger offered you a curt nod before he left without another word. You also gave a farewell as you prepared to leave. 

Once everyone left, you headed back to your dorm and finished up with your homework before you laid in your bed and popped in your earbuds. 

You fell asleep to the soft tune playing through your phone as you sunk deeper into your sheets. 

  
Unbeknownst to you, as you were contentedly going off to sleep, there was someone else preparing to make their grand arrival in your life... 

________________

Long ginger hair.

_Check._

Fabulously glamorous and attractive. 

_Check_.

Easy on the eyes. 

_And Check._

Pudding pursed her glossed lips and smiled to her pocket mirror as she snapped it shut for the last time. She smiled at her flawless appearance, inwardly cheering at her beauty as she strolled past the dozens of wandering eyes. 

She knew she was attractive and there was no denying it. 

Pudding couldn’t help but smile at her own excitement. She was acting as if she was a smitten schoolgirl, and it brought back memories of a time long ago, when she was so completely infatuated with _him._

As she sashayed through the terminal with her bags in hand, she offered the nearest security guard a wink and made her way to the front, greeting the chauffeur who was patiently waiting for her in front of his cab. She pressed a wad of bills into his hand before slipping into the passenger seat, tossing her bags to the back as she buckled herself in. The chauffeur closed the door after her and rounded out to the drivers side. 

Pudding's smile only grew wider as she took in the sweet scent of her hometown. It was all starting to come back to her -- the sights, the scents, and the overwhelming need to see _him_ again. 

Pudding was a woman with a mission and nothing could get in the way of what she wanted, especially when she was so close to attaining it. Of course, the matter of whether she would get it or not was a whole ‘nother question, but that wasn’t something she needed to concern herself with just yet. All she needed to do was get to _him_ before someone else could. 

After their horrid breakup a year prior, Pudding hadn’t been able to recover to her normal state. To say this was worse than all of her previous separations was an understatement.

This had completely shattered her.

It was after the incident that she had realized how much she loved him and needed him. Without him, she didn’t know if she could go on. 

\--And that’s what spurred her to want to reconnect with him a year later. Her longing and her infatuation had only grown stronger with the passing of time--that is, until it became unbearable enough for her to finally act on her urges. 

Though her five year relationship with _him_ had been rocky, she didn’t think that their bond was so weak that a single argument could break it. If she had tried to hold him back _that day_ , maybe he wouldn’t have left her so eagerly. To her, the breakup seemed like a dream now, considering how long ago it had occurred. 

The cab driver broke her out of her daze when he asked her for her destination. 

“Ma’am, where to?”

“Grand Line University.” She promptly answered, a tone of annoyance bleeding into her voice as she was reminded of her current situation. 

“Ah, a returning student, I assume?”

“Not quite.” The ginger popped open her tub of gloss, laving her lips with it and applying a fresh coat over her previous one. When she was satisfied with her look, she capped it and smacked her lips in front of her compact mirror again. “I’m here to retrieve what’s rightfully mine.”

“Oh?”

Pudding offered the man a faux smile. “While I appreciate the fascination with me, I must draw the line here.” She crossed her legs, “Do mind your business and get driving, I have places to be and I’m sure you do too.”

The man’s warm demeanor immediately crumpled as he slipped into a more professional one. His small talk came to a sudden halt when her face darkened, letting him in on her impatience with him. He slipped into the driver's seat and set the vehicle into motion, wasting no time on merging with the rest of traffic. 

The ginger, appreciative of the new-found silence, found herself excitedly tapping her fingers on the car door as the car flew down the highway.

Oh, how it made her excited thinking of how close she was to finally meeting the love of her life again. 

It was as if life had been renewed in her--as if someone had blown energy back into her brittle body. She was full of excitement and thrill; the prospect of seeing her love’s face sparking something in her. 

Pudding's lips quirked up as she took in the nostalgic scenery. How long had it been since she returned to the Grand Line? It couldn’t have been more than a year, but it seemed as if her last visit had been ages ago. 

The girl opened her purse and pulled out her phone, tapping on the glass surface to gaze upon her lock screen. She instantaneously smiled when the photo of her beloved appeared on the front screen. 

“Oh, how I long to see you again,” She slid her finger over the image of his smiling face, “I've missed you, _Ace._ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Pudding should technically be associated with Sanji, but I needed someone with her personality to be the ex for Ace.


	26. Auto-Shop Mishap

You met up with Sanji at his campus apartment and held out your offering of croissants and tea to make up for the car you had wrecked with Zoro. As expected, he laid the blame on his moss-headed friend and disregarded your concern, but accepted your little gift of food with delight. Before leaving, you made sure to pack up the clothes Kid had ‘lended’ you the night after the party, with the intent on handing it back to him when you met up with his group later that day. Of course, there was no guarantee that he was going to take it back, but you didn’t want to keep it in your dorm for fear that someone would misunderstand.

You looked into your bag and gazed at the folded clothes. As cute as they were, you knew you couldn't keep them... even if they were your style. 

'Damn Kid and his good fashion sense!'

Today, you were to meet up with the unruly red-head and his gang of misfits at his auto-shop to pick up your blonde friend’s newly repaired car. To say you were afraid was an understatement, you were absolutely terrified. How was one supposed to act normal around a person like _Eustass Kid,_ Grand Line University’s nightmare student.

Still, your friend, Sanji, going with you, helped quell the fear, if only by a little. However, it was still better than going alone.

So, you piled into the cab that your friend had hailed and drove all the way to the shop on the other end of the town. You could tell that Sanji was happy to be alone with a female figure, judging by his wandering eyes and frequent nosebleeds when you leaned in just a little too close to his side of the vehicle. Despite his perverted nature, he was still a gentleman, so he made sure not too stray too far over the bounds of what was deemed okay. 

You were thankful of that, at least. 

You leaned against the cool glass of the window and relished in the feeling of solidarity that it gave you. The scenery was also a welcoming sight to your tired eyes. After a month of chaos and confusion, you were glad for this moment of peace, as short as it may be.

Sanji moved to his prospective seat and remained quiet for the remainder of the ride as the two of you rode there in comfortable silence.

However, that moment of peace was broken when you witnessed a squirrel puking by the roadside over a nut that had lodged itself into its throat. 

You might be wondering how that affected you? Well--

A barrage of memories from your night at Kid’s place suddenly hit you like a freight train.

_You were hunched over the toilet, heaving out the remnants of your stomach as someone held your hair back for you. Despite their kind actions, you had a feeling that that was the last place they wanted to be right now, and your fears were confirmed when you turned around to look at them._

_In your daze, you couldn’t quite make out the blurry figure in front of you, but you immediately recognized them by their shock of red hair and the signature goggles holding them up._

_You whirled back the other way around and barfed over the toilet again, eliciting a loud groan as the acid continued to burn a trail up your throat._

_“You better not get that shit on me.” The other growled loudly as they yanked up your hair, “I don’t get why the fuck I’m doing this. I’m not even a babysitter.” He complained._

_For all their whining, you were confused as to why they were still helping you recover from your little session on the loo. Maybe it was because you were invading their stall... or maybe it was due to the fact that you were causing a ruckus. Either way, you were thankful for their assistance, because you were sure that without it, you might have stained the walls green with your innards._

_Once you had nothing to expel, you tiredly rubbed at your mouth with the back of your sleeve and murmured, “I think--,” You groaned, “I think I’m done.”_

_“You better. I don’t need you staining another mat in my house.”_

_You sunk lower in your spot and hung your head down. The feelings of sadness, guilt, and regret all flooded your mind as you were reminded of the events that had gone down today._

_Now that your mind was free of the state of your stomach, you were forced to face the memories that haunted you once again._

_Maybe it was the alcohol or maybe is was because of something else, but you were feeling far more melancholy than usual._

_You first felt the pressure behind your eyes and the glassiness of the tears as they rose up out of your tear ducts._

_Kid’s face grew pale when you lifted your hand to your face again, as if you were preparing yourself for a second round over the toilet, but to his utter shock, and dismay, fat tears started rolling down your face._

_The red-head brows creased over his eyes as he took in your tight expression. You tried so hard to suppress the oncoming wave of sorrow, but you knew it was futile when the other gripped the side of your face to force you to look his way._

_“Are you crying?” His tone was that of indifference, but his face begged to differ._

_You harshly wiped at the underside of your eyes with irritation as you snapped back at him, “No, I’m not.”_

_When he moved to tilt you his way, you pushed back and averted your gaze from the intense ones directed your way._

_“Yes, you fucking are.”_

_“I said I wasn’t, so give it a break.”_

_You gripped onto the tiled sink and lifted yourself into a standing position as you made your way out of the bathroom-- only to be stopped when the other lightly grabbed your forearm, stopping you in place._

_“You’re still drunk, I’ll carry you--”_

_“No, I can walk myself.” You took one shaky step and immediately collapsed into the nearest wall, almost banging your head against the brick if it weren’t for the man right behind you._

_“You’re one stubborn bitch, aren’t you? I can see why Portgas had his hands filled.” He had his hand smashed between your skull and the wall before it could get any worse._

_With an impatient sigh, the red-head lifted you into his arms and walked over to his room._

_“Come on, I don’t have time for your shit. Just go to sleep and then get the fuck out of my place.”_

_You were holding onto the sleeves of his shirt as you bit down on your lip in humiliation to keep the tears from falling. You refused to let your frustration be known, even if your eyes popped out from the pressure you applied to them, but try as you may, your silence didn’t go unnoticed to the other._

_He glanced down at you and heaved out a heavy sigh before tossing you onto the bed. This had been your second time getting out to relieve yourself in the bathroom -- and the second time you had woken him up. To say he was exhausted and quite literally about to lose his shit was an understatement, but he couldn’t exactly kick you out when you were in this state, so he did what he could and cleaned you up to the best of his abilities._

_His eyes roved over your fetal position, narrowing in barely concealed anger as certain memories rose to the forefront of his mind, reminding him of the memories he'd rather keep suppressed._

_He pressed his nails into his palms and growled out, "Fuck this."_

_“You know,” The other proceeded carefully with his next words, “If you want to cry, then cry. If you want to beat someone up, beat them up. I don’t give a shit, but--” He lifted the collar of your shirt and pulled you up to face level, “--Don’t be a fucking coward and bottle it up. Don’t allow others to take advantage of your vulnerableness.”_

_With one swift move, he tossed his feathered coat over you again, causing you to look up at him with round, shining eyes._

_He dropped you into the bed again and walked to the other end of the room to flick the lights off before making it to the door, one hand propped on the handle as he glanced back at you. “I despise weakness.”_

_Kid closed the door without another word, leaving you to lament in your feelings._

_No matter how much you wanted to deny his words, some part of you knew he was right, but you weren’t ready to face your feelings yet; especially not in the state you were in now._

_You fell into a restless sleep that night; your mind plagued by the memories of your youth._

“Shit.” You grabbed your face, completely mortified. “So that’s what he meant by that second favor!?” 

Oh, that asshole, Kid! How could you have forgotten that night? Was it because of the alcohol? Did it somehow alter your memories?

He was using your drunk-addled moment of weakness to earn himself another favor from you! What could that bastard possibly want? Wasn’t he already pushing it?

Sanji whipped his head your way, confused at your sudden outburst. “Y/n, are you okay? Did something happen?”

You snapped your mouth shut and turned to your friend, offering him a shaky smile to ease his worries. You hadn’t realized that you were projecting your thoughts aloud until the other two in the vehicle were looking your way in concern. 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you. It’s just-- It’s nothing.” 

“Are you sure?” He asked warily. 

“Positive," You chuckled, "Just some stupid memory I remembered.” 

The two of you laughed off the awkwardness before striking up a small conversation to pass the time. When you finally arrived at the auto-shop, you thanked the driver and offered him what little you had before going straight into the garage with Sanji. 

You swallowed the lump of uneasiness as you walked into the building. From appearances alone, it looked like one of those shops you’d see used as a front for a group of gangsters in an Italian mob boss movie and it was exactly what you’d expect from a place like this; musky, sweaty, and filled with loud music and rambunctious gangster-like men. 

As you walked deeper into the place, you prayed for Kid’s absence, as absurd as that may be. You were here to get your car from him, after all, what good would it do you if he wasn’t here? That didn't keep you from wishing that he wasn't here though. 

The males lounging near a pair of motorcycles turned their heads up when they heard the two of you walking in. 

From the odd stares you were getting, the pair of you must have looked quite out of place in this part of town. While Sanji was wearing a sleek, Italian cut suit, you were adorned in a pair of gray slats and an oversized t-shirt, so you kind of understood why you were getting weird looks. 

“Need something, sweet-heart?” One of them called out. 

Another shouted, “Why don’t you step away from the prissy rich boy over there and talk to us!” 

Sanji warily stepped closer to you and shot the other’s a scathing glare as he approached a slightly friendlier looking individual. They stopped mid-way in their conversation to look over at the blonde. 

"Need something?" 

Sanji cleared his throat, “We’re just here to pick up our vehicle, do you happen to know where it is?”

“Sure, mate, you got a confirmation for your order?” 

“Uhh,” The blonde looked over at you and raised his brows, as if to ask, ‘Did we even get one?’

“I don’t believe so.”

The ruffian shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and blew out a ring from his cigarette, “Then we can’t help you. Sorry.”

As your friend began haggling with the other, you stepped away and walked over to a pair of motorcycles propped up by the wall nearby. You slid your hand over the cool metal and marveled at the intricate designs on the side.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” You looked up, fast as lightning, and gave the individual an incredulous look.

Your heart was beating a million miles an hour. 

"Shit, you scared me." You were acting as if you’d been caught with your hand in the cookie jar.

"Sorry, didn't mean to." 

You breathed out a breath of relief when you realized that it was only Heat. 

“Yeah,” You answered, “It’s really nice. Is it a customer's vehicle in need of repair?” 

“Not exactly.” His hand moved over to the skull and roses imprinted near the rear of the bike. “It’s the bosses.”

Your eyes widened. “Kid’s?” 

"Wow, It’s really nice.” You admitted.

“Of course it is. He spent a while fixing it to be the best that it could be. Some junkie dumped it off in the middle of nowhere and Kid decided to take it back and repair it."

"Really?"

He nodded. 

"Yup. This beauty’s name is Victorian Punk.”

“Wow.” The two of you continued to stare at it in awe even as a taller blonde stepped away from a band of boys and raised his hand over to you, giving a little wave. The two of you turned around to see Killer gesturing you over. 

“Sorry about the wait.” He slapped the back of the head of the man who had denied Sanji before returning his attention to the two of you. “Hey, Heat, can you look over Darien’s order, I think he’s having trouble with a certain customer.”

“Copy that.” Heat gave you one final smile before departing from your side. You gave off a little wave as you reconnected with your friend, tossing him a relieved smile at the welcoming presence. 

Yo, Y/n--and her friend.” Killer greeted the two of you, moving from his position near the entrance of the garage to your side. 

You looked around the blonde for any sign of the hot-headed red-head, and when you found no indication of him, you visibly sagged in relief. You then offered the other a small wave and smile as he headed your way.

“Killer, thank goodness. I was starting to think we went to the wrong shop or something.”

“Sorry for making you wait, I just didn’t think you’d get here so early. And I hope our workers didn’t make you feel uncomfortable--they tend to do that to anything with a pair of legs, so it'd do you well to just ignore them."

“Oh, it’s no problem. I can take care of myself against a few idiots.”

Sanji gave you an odd side-ways glance. “Right... because they didn’t just cat-call you two seconds ago. I would have beat the shit out of them if they weren’t the ones working on our car.”

Killer sheepishly rubbed at the back of his neck, “Again, sorry about them.”

“They really go to show the kind of people Kid associates himself with.”

“Hey--,” You slapped Sanjis' arm. “Cut them some slack, would you? They were kind enough to take our car in when no other would.”

“You’re being too nice to them, Y/n.”

“I’m going to have to agree with your friend here,” Killer glanced back as he led the two of you through a set of doors to another garage. “They wouldn’t have acted like that if the big boss weren't around. Speaking of Kid, he had us work on your car in a separate area. Here, it’s right around the corner.”

He opened a pair of large double doors, revealing your repaired and newly polished vehicle near a bench of tools. 

“Woah, it looks as good as new.” You glanced over at Killer nervously, “I’m starting to think that there’s a catch here. Are you sure the price you charged us is enough for all this?”

“I’m with Y/n-chan here. There’s no way someone like Kid would give us such a low price without wanting something more.” Sanji commented.

“Look, I’m just the middle man here. I don’t know the exact specifics of your deal, but that’s something you’re going to have to ask him yourself. All I was told to do was take you to the vehicle.” The blonde shrugged. 

You glanced over to your friend and then back to the car, assessing the situation. If you wanted to, you could just hop in with Sanji and leave the place without a second thought. That would certainly save you from the awkward--and potentially heated conversation with Kid, but that wouldn’t alleviate the guilt you’d feel from paying such a meager sum for such a great job on the vehicle. 

“In any case,” You went over to Killer, “Thank you so much for repairing it. I don’t know what we would have done if you didn’t accept our plea.”

“I didn’t do anything. That was all Kid--”

“Still.”

The blonde relented to your relentless words of gratitude as he tossed the vehicle keys to Sanji who grabbed them swiftly. Your friend gave him a quick nod as he went over to the car to inspect the work done on it, leaving you to stand before Killer, offering him your many thanks. 

“Again, thank you for it.” You dug into your bag and brought out the folded clothes from Kid, “Before we leave, can you give these back to Kid? I’m not sure if I’ll see him anytime soon and I’m sure he wants them back, so…” You trailed off.

A tall shadow loomed over you as the sudden smell of cologne overtook your senses. 

“Who’s not here?” The deep, velvety voice rumbled with an air of authority, sending chills down your back as you thought of the worst. 

“I didn’t think you’d be here.” Killer indifferently said as his eyes flew to the man standing directly behind of you. 

“Why wouldn’t I? This is my shop.” 

The large presence leaned over your head and a hand emerged from the darkness, plucking the set of shirts in your arms. 

“What’s this?” The voice seemed to sneer down at your shocked expression, “Too afraid to return these by yourself, Scooter?” 

“I thought you said he wasn’t going to be here.” You half whispered-half hissed to Killer, who averted his eyes the moment that they caught yours. 

“Didn’t expect to see me here?” 

You jumped away from the voice and scurried over to Sanji’s side, feeling slightly better when his body moved to hide you from the intruding gaze. 

“You’re an asshole, Kid. Sneaking up on people like that is a shitty move!”

Kid scowled at the blonde’s interruption, but said nothing on it as he continued to fix you with a shit-eating smirk. “Big talk coming from a little girl who can’t even speak to me without having to hide behind her friends.”

Your blood boiled at that comment, sending you into a fit of rage that caused you to leap from behind of Sanji's back as you confronted the Scot head on. 

“Look here, I didn’t come here to make small talk with you. I just wanted to pick up the car and drop these back off without having to bump into you.” You dumped the remainder of the shirts into his arms and crossed your arms. 

The man frowned as he looked between the clothes and you, “How nice of you to wash them before returning it, but I don't need them anymore."

"But they smell nice. Is that citrus I detect?"

You turned a bright red as he lifted the material up to his face, his grin growing ever wider at your expression. 

He placed the clothes right back in your arms, causing you to force them into his again. The two of you played a little game of back and forth until one of you gave up. 

“Why won't you take them back? Just keep it, I don’t want it.” You groaned. 

“That’s too bad, isn’t it? I already said I don’t fucking want them.” He frowned down at you. 

“Well, I don’t want them either! What the hell am I supposed to do with them? It’s not like I can wear them, because… well-- They’re oversized! It’d be like walking around in a shirt the size of a ball gown!”

Sanji grew tense and moved in when the other took a step closer to you. He was torn on whether he should jump in or if he should ease off. You didn’t want him to butt in where he had no business butting in, especially when it had to do with Kid. There was no telling what would happen and you didn’t want to rope him into your problems. 

“All the more reason to wear them.” He took hold of the hand holding onto the clothes and brought them closer to him so that they were pressed up to his abdominal muscles, “I quite liked you wearing them. Much better than how Portgas's hat looked on you.”

_'Ace?'_ What did he have to do with anything?

You felt the warm, taut muscles shift under your fingers as you made an attempt to lean away, but the pressure on your wrist was keeping you in place.

“Don’t say weird things like that, someone could get the wrong idea.” You yanked your hand back and dumped the clothes onto a nearby rack before fixing the taller individual with a heated glare. He directed one right back, but kept the large grin plastered on his face as a show of dominance. 

“Wrong idea? I’m being as clear as I can fucking be.” 

“Look, I don’t know what your intentions with her are, but we’re quite busy, so we’ll be leaving now.” Kid grabbed Sanji’s wrist as he grabbed at your arm, halting the two of you in the process. 

"What are you--"

You felt only dread when those tawny eyes scrutinized your friend’s tense form before flitting over to you, as if assessing the connection you had with him. 

“I have no business with you, so your departure would mean jackshit to me, but her, on the other hand,” He jutted a finger your way, “I have _business_ with.”

You swallowed the rise of panic in your stomach before turning to Sanji, giving him a reassuring smile as if to say nothing was wrong. He knew that was a lie, but he didn’t want to push his luck for fear of offending you and the last thing he wanted to do was offend a lady. 

“If it’s about that favor, then I’ll uphold it.”

“Oh, I know you will." His tawny eyes were ablaze with excitement and curiosity, "After all, I always get what I want.” 

“And what is it that you want?” 

You dreaded the answer. 

“I’m sure you already know the answer to that.” 

'Wasn't he with Monet?' You thought. 

If so, then wasn't what he was doing wrong?

You shook your head and took out the possibility that he might be hitting on you, concluding that this must have been some sort of misunderstanding; but the mixed signals were sure throwing you off. 

"Then I'll make damn sure you don't get it." You growled out, only eliciting a larger grin from the other.

Killer and Sanji shifted in discomfort at the electrifying atmosphere as they watched the red-head lean ever so closer to you. This sent Sanji into fight-or-flight mode. He was unsure on whether to jump the other man or to whisk you away to safety, but all he knew was that something needed to be done before shit hit the fan. 

To calm the fidgety blonde, Killer popped open a pack of cigarettes and shook the container at the other. Sanji accepted the tab with reluctance before placing the unlit end to his lips, breathing in deeply to calm his nerves. After a moment of silence, the jitteriness in his body went down, allowing him to slip into a state of temporary serene. 

You glanced over at your friend and relaxed. Now that the tension had finally subsided, you didn’t need to worry about him pouncing on Kid like a mama-tiger anymore.

“So, you’ve remembered it then? I’m glad, that makes things easier on my part.” Without another word, the red-head departed from your side and made for the entrance of the garage, setting the others at ease now that he was no longer near you. “I suppose we’ll be seeing each other some other time then, Scooter. I look forward to the things we’ll do.”

His painted lips stretched into a wide grin as he offered a mock salute to the two of you. “Until then.”

"Asshole." You murmured. 

You weren't going to let things go his way.

Killer offered the two of you an apology and offered to make it up, but when you told him that it was alright, he kept on insisting. Eventually, after much persuasion, you were able to get him to relax, assuring him repeatedly that Kid was just being an asshole as usual. Of course, you knew that he wasn’t acting like ‘normal’, but you couldn’t just tell that to his friend... or Sanji, for that matter. You didn’t know why he was behaving this way, but you had far too many things to worry about other than him right now, so you decided to brush it off for now--which is something you’d been doing for a crap ton of things, now that you thought about it.

Procrastination at its finest. 

Once Sanji paid the meager sum that Killer had asked for, the two of you bid your goodbyes and departed from the place in the newly repaired vehicle. When you were a good distance away from the shop, you turned to your friend and asked for a ride back to your dorm, stating that you had something to do later that day. He obliged eagerly and drove back, dropping you off with a wave and an air kiss as he peeled out of the driveway. 

You cringed in mortification as a group of passersby's smiled awkwardly at the interaction and sped away. You really wanted to clear the air that there was nothing going on between the two of you, but they were gone before you could explain yourself. 

Wearily, you made your way back to your dorm and changed into a slightly nicer outfit before you went over to your desk, lifting the gift bag you planned to give to Torao.

You kneeled down and fished through your bag for your phone, only to realize that Kid had returned his shirts back to your bag.

You lifted them in the air and tossed them to the floor, immediately stomping on it with your shoe in anger. 

"I should just burn them."

After a moment of bated silence, you picked it up once more, feeling regret for tarnishing such a good shirt. 

"But they're so nice..."

In humiliation, you pressed them to your nose and inhaled, relishing in the citrusy scent that it gave off. They really did smell good...

Before you could get distracted by the shirts any longer, you tossed them aside and refocused on the birthday gift.

Enough about Kid, now you needed to think about Torao. 

After what had happened with Eustass, you were hoping that this next event would be much less 'excitable', but you knew that things rarely, if ever, happened the way you wanted them to...


	27. Birthday Bash!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was longer than expected. 
> 
> Oops.

Law blew out an exasperated sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose as he fell back into his couch, his body instantly unwinding under the soft cushions supporting his brittle bones. 

After a day of backbreaking work in the hospital, the ravenette was more than was ready to toss back and spend the rest of his time reading a book and unwinding with a glass of wine. Unfortunately for him, this was not to be, especially when he heard the tell-tale cry of his phone by the glass table stand. 

With a growl, the male stood up and went over to the device. He flipped it open and scanned over the first text message that appeared on his lock screen.

It was from _you._

Had it been any other person, he might have just thrown his phone aside and moved onto more interesting things, but as much as he hated to admit it, he was curious as to what you had to say. 

He debated on answering, but ultimately succumbed to his curiosity when another message appeared. 

**Y/n (Idiot 2.0)**

**Y/n:** Hey!

 **Y/n:** Wya rn?

_Delivered at 3:21 p.m._

_Read at 3:35 p.m._

**Law:** Y/n-ya?

 **Law:** Why.

 **Y/n:** You took a long ass time replying to that. >:(

 **Law:** I’m under no obligation to answer your texts. 

**Law:** Be grateful that I am.

 **Law:** And I’m at my apartment--as usual.

 **Law:** Why?

 **Y/n:** Rude as always. :(

 **Y/n:** And no reason! 

**Y/n:** I’ll be there shortly!

 **Law:** Wait--

 **Law:** What?

 **Law:** You’re not coming over and that’s final.

 **Y/n:** Booooooo.

 **Y/n:** Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten?

 **Law:** Forgotten?

 **Y/n:** Nvm. :(

 **Y/n:** You’re an idiot, aren’t you?

 **Law:** I don’t want to hear that from you of all people.

 **Y/n:** :(

 **Law:** Quit it with the sad face.

 **Y/n:** Then stop saying mean things.

 **Law:** What are you, 12? Grow up.

 **Y/n:** :,(

 **Law:** In any case, are you serious about coming over?

 **Y/n:** When have I ever lied to you?

 **Law:** … 

**Law:** Need I answer that?

 **Y/n:** … 

**Y/n:** I suppose not. 

**Y/n:** And yes, I’m coming over. Be there in five!

 **Y/n:** Make that twenty! Also, can you send me your address? I might have forgotten it. 

**Law:** You’ve been over several times already…

 **Y/n:** I’ve got the memory of pea. 

**Law:** … 

**Law:** Fine, but don’t create a ruckus and don’t bring along unnecessary company.

 **Law:** And I expect you to leave before nightfall. 

**Y/n:** Roger that, cap! Ttyl!

Law tossed his phone aside and walked over to his kitchen to retrieve a bottle of his finest brandy. He’d need if he was to survive a day with you. It wasn’t that he was insinuating you would be a head ache-- no, you were definitely going to be a handful to deal with. 

In order to tolerate you, he’d need at least a glassful of alcohol to dull the oncoming headache. 

The first thing he did was walk into his pantry and fish out the largest cask of brandy he could find. The second was opening the large windows overlooking the city and the door to his roofed balcony, allowing the crisp, October wind to blow through his stuffy place. 

It was beautiful outside. It being fall, the sun was already starting to dip low in the sky, sending hues of orange and pink across the blue canvas. 

The warmth of the last rays enveloped his body in a light embrace, giving him a moment of clarity to process his jumbled thoughts. 

When he wasn't at home, he was at work. As a bachelors working for his masters, his time at the University hospital was eating up what little freedom he had. Sure, the pay as a med student/intern wasn’t the worst, but it was far from the best. At least he had his foot in the door, right? Maybe he’d get the opportunity to climb up the ladder at some point or something. 

That was the plan, at least. 

The ravenette shrugged off his coat and scrubbed at the lines on his face before heading over to his room to take a quick nap. 

Before he laid down on his bed, he stopped by his desk, seeing the preserved spotted flower that you had given him all those years ago. He walked over to it and touched the end of its brittle petal before dropping his hand for fear that it would break. How long had he been holding onto it? Why was he still holding onto it, was the real question. 

Maybe it was because it had been one of the first gifts someone had ever given him…

A large frown curved his face as he drew back, walking over to his bed to take a quick nap. 

He was awoken to a rythme of knocks thirty minutes later, abruptly waking him up from his little rest session. 

He groggily walked out of his bedroom and padded over to the front door, leaning against the side of it as he swung it open. You were standing on the other side rubbing at your frozen hands as you pulled up your scarf even higher, almost covering the entirety of your face with it to stave off the cold. Upon realizing that the door had opened, you stopped warming your hands and moved to stare up at the ravenette. Your eyes glimmered under the sun, your entire demeanor changing the minute you saw him.

“Torao!” You yanked down your scarf and exclaimed, your rosey cheeks growing a bright red at the pervasive chill. “I come bearing gifts, so you don’t have to worry about housing me without proper compensation!” 

Law was stunned for a moment, his mind brain-farting as he took in your overall appearance. Maybe it was the strands of hair poking out of your coat or the way your scarf was riding up your face, but there was something about you that was… bothering him. That feeling of discomfort only increased tenfold when you hopped up and slung an arm around his shoulders, bringing him down to your level as you smiled brightly at him--almost like what Luffy would do whenever they met. 

At least you looked better than the last time he had seen you.

The ravenette turned away and clicked his tongue, moving to the side so you could get inside. “Who said anything about housing, idiot. Don’t get ahead of yourself, I’m only allowing you to stay here for a short while.”

You blew at your hands once more before walking straight into his condo, immediatley beelining for the couch. 

“Don’t be such a grouch all the time, you’ll only end up getting more wrinkles. And here I’d thought that the tattoos I gave you would fix that...”

“I only get wrinkles because of people like you, and these tattoos,” He lifted his hands and pointed to the slightly faded ‘Alive’ markings scrawled over his knuckles, “--they still haven’t washed out yet. How do you expect me to explain these to my superiors, especially when I’m supposed to go into a surgery?” 

“Well, I wrote them in sharpie, what did you expect? On the plus side though, I think it looks pretty fashionable.” The ravenette shot you an incredulous look as you nonchalantly blew out a piece of crud from your ear. He frowned when you smiled up at him innocently. “And you wear gloves when you're in a surgery, right? I don’t see the problem here.”

“You’re the problem, you dimwitted numbskull. And if we’re talking about fashion, what’s wrong with your hair?” He pinched the bridge of his nose and inhaled before regaining his self-control. Your hand flew to the choppy, burnt ends of your hair. 

“Oh, about that… I burned it the other day doing something dumb…with that idiot Ace...” 

“I should’ve expected that--Don’t know why I asked in the first place.” He sighed. 

The ravenette shut his door and walked over to his kitchen to take out two, hexagonal shaped drinking glasses. “That aside, what did you come here for?”

You guffawed at him. 

“You should know why!” 

“No, I can’t say that I do. You rarely visit my place.”

Not a single thing came to mind, so he had no idea what you could have possibly been referring to. Had he forgotten to do something? Was today an important holiday he’d not been given a heads up to?

“You can be more of an airhead than Luffy sometimes.”

That’s the absolute last thing he wanted to hear today. 

Law glared down at you as you walked over his way, presenting a large bag while exclaiming, “Happy Birthday!” 

It took him another long minute to process that. 

“Birthday?” He dumbly repeated. 

Who’s birthday? His birthday? It couldn’t have--Wait, today was October 6th? Already?

It took him a while to comprehend your words, but when he did, you were already fixing him with an impatient glare.

He just blinked in confusion, as if you’d just asked him the worlds hardest question. 

“I know I didn’t get you a card or anything, but I thought you'd think it’d be tacky and you don’t really like corny stuff like that… And I know I wasn’t able to get you the most expensive gift, but-- open it.”

“I don’t want it.”

“Don’t be like that, just open it.” You fixed him with another glare.

When he made no move to accept it, you drew back with a huff, “You’re an asshole. If you really don’t want it, then just give it back.” 

Despite the fact that he had initially rejected it, he had no intention of returning it, whatever it may be. I mean, when had you ever given him a gift besides that flower? And it wasn't that he didn't want it, he was just embarrassed to accept it so willingly. It made him seem... soft?

When you tried to make a grab for it, he pulled it just out reach. 

“It’s probably something shitty anyways.” He grumbled. 

“You jerk--”

As you babbled on, he peeled open the first layer of the gift, discarding the wrapping paper above. Once it was gone, he reached down and lifted a neatly folded overcoat, his fingers running over the dark material. Not only was it the perfect size, but it also matched his overall style. 

“You’re always walking with your chest out like Ace, so I thought it'd be good if I got you something to cover up all that skin--And I thought it was something you’d might like. Oh, and there’s another thing in there that you might want to check out!"

He placed the coat aside for a minute as he scrounged through the rest of the wrapping to get at the two onigiris at the bottom. His eyes widened for a second before returning to normal. 

How had you known he had a weak spot for them? It wasn’t like he’d told you about it before, but maybe you were just more perceptive than he was giving you credit for.

“ _Umeboshi_?” He asked.

“No, I know you don't like how sour they are, so I stuck with salmon and eel.”

He glanced back to the coat. Just by appearances alone, he could tell that it was expensive. That being said, he also knew you didn’t have money to splash on something so pricey, which led him to conclude that you must have scraped up what little you could to get it. With his profession, he could have gotten it whenever he wanted--not to say that he would--but for you to get something like this for someone you weren't all that close too… well, he wasn’t sure what to think. 

“I know it’s shitty, but--”

“It was unnecessary.” He dumped the jacket on his couch and went over to the kitchen table to put the onigiris away. “You didn’t need to go all this way to get something like this.”

“But I did.” You snapped back. “So, you’re going to accept it, whether you like it or not. It matters not if you throw it away after I leave, but for now, just take it.”

His eyes narrowed on you as he took in your defiant expression, widening only when the glimmer of hesitation appeared in yours. No matter how stubborn you may have appeared on the outside, he knew your uncertainty was eating away at your consciousness. 

He wasn’t the type to comfort someone when they were like this, but he didn’t want to be that shitty person who spat on someones gift. So, he wordlessly zipped open the coat and shrugged it over his attire.

It was warm, comfortable, and just the right fit, not to mention that it also smelled like you; of citrus and of… home, not unlike that of Corazon. 

Your face immediately brightened as soon as he’d worn it, the ends of your mouth splitting open to form a wide smile. “It looks great!” You exclaimed as you began to pat him aggressively on the shoulder. “I mean, of course it would! I picked it out, after all!” 

“Don’t go growing a big head because of this, it doesn’t even look that good.” He moved around a little to test out its mobility before sitting back in the couch. 

“Hey, I think it looks--,” but before you could finish your sentence, Law’s phone buzzed. You grunted in frustration when the other ignored your complaints and went over to his device. He lifted it up and grimaced before putting it face down on his table again. 

“Who’s it from?”

“No one.” 

It buzzed once more. 

“I really think you should check it.” You made a grab for it, only to find yourself pushed away when he went for it in exchange.

“I already said it wasn’t important. Lay off.” His pocketed the phone in one of the inner pockets of his coat before turning away to get a glass of water. Ten minutes in and he was already getting a headache. 

Once you were beginning to lose interest in his device, it started going off like a siren, blaring and beeping while Law did his best to muffle the sound under the layers of his coat. When it didn't work, he began moving to his bedroom, mumbling some excuse that he needed to go to the bathroom for a second. 

When you chased after him, he slammed the door and scrolled through his phone.

**Heart Gang**

**Bepo:** Law! When are you getting here?

 **Shachi:** We’ve been waiting for over an hour! What are you doing? Drop your stuff and bring your dick!

 **Law:** What the fuck.

 **Law:** I don’t even know where you guys are.

 **Law:** And I have no intention on going.

 **Penguin:** He’s going.

 **Jean Bart:** Get your ass over here. I’m not waiting any longer.

 **Ikkaku:** Wait, he’s not here yet?

 **Bepo:** Nope. 

**Shachi:** Law, just hurry up.

 **Law:** I said I’m not going.

 **Bepo:** What the fuck!? We already made a reservation!

 **Shachi:** See, I told you he’d be like this.

 **Penguin:** Come on, Law! It’s your birthday for crying out loud! Just drop everything you’re doing and hop out for a second!

 **Ikkaku:** It’ll be good for you!

 **Law:** No.

Law dropped the phone onto his bed and reclined on the nearest chair, brushing back his hair from his eyes to look at the beeping device. 

“That’s an awful long shit you’re taking in there!” You hollered from the other side of the door. 

Law pocketed his device and turned to the entrance with a growl, yanking it open to see you lounging on his couch with a pack of opened crackers in your lap. “Yo, that took you forever.”

You patted down the crumbs that had fallen and popped one more chip into your mouth as you mumbled, “Did it take you that long to text whoever was trying to get through to you?”

“I told you that I was going to the bathroom, idiot.”

“Like I’d believe that," With a sigh, you shrugged, "but it’s none of my business anyways.”

You stood up and tied your scarf around your neck again, preparing to leave. “And I think I’ve overstayed my welcome. It’s probably time I go home. Thanks for letting me stay though.”

His head snapped your way as you began packing your things up. 

Suddenly, he felt as if his world was at a standstill. Some part of him didn't want you to go, especially on a night like this. It wasn't that he was feeling particularly chatty, but your presence made his lonesome birthday just a little better. 

“It’s a party.” He abruptly stated. 

You stopped in your tracks and backpedaled over to him, your brow creasing over your eyes in confusion. “What’s this about a party?”

“The texts you were curious about. They’re about a party--or rather, a birthday party for me.”

“Hey! That’s great! I’m sure it’ll be good for you to go out and have some fun with your friends.”

“I’m not going.” He stated bluntly again. 

“Oh, don’t be a dick, Torao. If your friends are holding a party for you, why don’t you go?”

“Isn’t that up to me to decide?” He scoffed, folding his arms over his chest as he looked you down with those piercing silver eyes of his. You only stared back, repeating his exact position as you huffed out, “Well yes, but actually no. It’s common courtesy.” 

Law listened in disinterest as you went off on a rant explaining why he should go, but nothing you said seemed to sway him in the slightest, even if you resorted to more… brutal tactics. In all honesty, having been raised by a trio of hooligans, this was the only way of persuasion you knew. Yet, for all your pushing, Law didn’t budge an inch, even when you ‘attempted’ to drag him to the front door.

You pulled on his shirt, his sleeve, you even popped yourself through his coat to tug at him, but nothing you seemed to do worked. It wasn’t until he tired of your pathetic attempts did he relent, but not before he made a demand of his own. 

“Fine, I’ll go,” He firmly tugged on the material around your neck, “but you’re coming with me. You’re the one who convinced me to go, it’s only fair you compensate by going along with me, don’t you think?”

“That makes zero sense. This is supposed to be your party--I don’t even know why I’m getting dragged into it in the first place.”

He was annoyed that you didn’t immediately agree, but he had his ways to get you to go, even if that meant using more dirty tactics. 

Law took hold of your scarf and pulled it off before holding it just out of reach, infuriating you when you couldn’t reach it. He knew his height had always pissed you off and he was glad it was of some advantage in a situation like this, especially when he needed to get his way. 

“Torao, you jerk!” You lunged for it again, only to fall flat on your face when he narrowly side-stepped your attack. Once you recovered from the face-palm with the floor, you made another attempt to grab for it. When he dodged your move again, he whirled around and wrapped the scarf around your neck, completely immobilizing you. As you stood on your tiptoes with your face a mere inch from his, he declared, “I’m not going to give it back unless you agree.”

You defiantly looked up, “And If I say no?”

A tingle of excitement shot down his spine at those fiery eyes of yours, instantly igniting a dormant feeling in his chest.

“Then you aren’t going to get it back.” He whispered lowly. 

“Good thing it wasn't my favorite scarf then.” You tugged at the material, putting some distance between the two of you as you broke free of his grip. For how lanky he was, he was quite the strong man, but maybe that's because he was pitted against someone with much less muscle mass than him. 

An idea popped into Law’s mind, immediately setting a smug grin on his face as he took in your bedazzled expression. 

“I’m sure they serve strawberry milk and the food’s free.”

Hook, line, and sinker. 

Your eyes widened a millimeter and your mouth opened to form a small ‘o’ as your entire visage seemed to glitter in glee. 

It took everything in him to prevent a grin from splitting his face, but he couldn’t help the way his eyes widened on your shocked expression. 

He had you completely wrapped around his finger at the mention of your favorite beverage. He really didn’t know why he was trying this hard to get you to stay, but now that’d he done it, there was no backing out now. If anything, he was quite glad that things had turned out this way. With you around, he was more likely than not to get out of the party quicker than if he’d gone alone. It was a win-win situation for the both of you. 

Law wordlessly brushed you aside as he opened his front door, beckoning the two of you outside as he locked up. 

“Now, if you have no complaints, why don’t we get going. The quicker we get there, the sooner we can leave.”

“Or we can stay the entire night! I’m sure the food would be well worth it!” 

Law frowned at you. “Weren’t you the one that wanted to go home? What happened to that?”

“Now, now, don’t be like that, Torao~.” You patted his shoulder with a devious grin, “I wasn’t in my right mind at the time.”

It didn’t matter that you had agreed to go because of the food, the only thing that mattered was the fact that he had somehow convinced you to go, but it still nagged at him that the reason for your attendance hadn't been him--not like he was going to overanalyze it though, he wasn't Ace. 

You were literally dragging him by the hem of his coat to his car when you got down to the parking lot, a large smile splitting your face as soon as you'd left his side. He merely followed close behind as you hopped into the passenger seat and sat eagerly on the edge as Law slipped in.

'What an idiot,' He thought when he buckled himself in.

You followed suit and secured yourself in your seat, earning yourself an incredulous look as your legs began swinging under you like that of an excited child. You then began rattling off the various foods that you planned to eat at the restaurant. 

He scoffed lightly as he took the car out of the parking and merged onto the highway, the two of you driving in relative silence. The radio set a peaceful mood as the car continued down the path to the destination. It took almost no time before the two of you got there. Perhaps it had been because of the comfortable silence or the company, but Law was already feeling the stresses of his day beginning to melt away. 

When you arrived at the restaurant, you immediately bounded out of the car as Law drove away to find a parking spot, earning a sigh of defeat as he watched you walk into the place.

It wasn't that he was annoyed by your eagerness to leave so quick, but by the fact that you had left the passenger door wide open when he was trying to find a parking spot. 

His annoyance and irritation only grew when he saw you squeezed between Bepo and Penguin, your hands messing up his blonde friends hair as your eyes glittered with impressment. Although Penguin was off-put by your presence, Bepo adjusted rather quickly, his demeanor immediately changing as soon as you'd come in. He greeted you warmly as he brought you into a bear hug, his head rubbing into yours affectionately as Law walked in. 

The ravenette glowered darkly when he made it to the table, putting everyone in an awkward silence at his dangerous mood. He quickly sat down and greeted the others. Although he was relatively warm, his eyes never left your giggling form, something that some of the members had noticed. 

He had no idea why he was so annoyed, but it was starting to get on his nerves. Perhaps he should have just stayed at home and kicked you out, but that wasn't something he could do now that he was finally here. All he could do now was watch as you mingled with his friends. 

“Law, you came!” Shachi exclaimed, his face a bright red from all the alcohol that he had consumed. Penguin held him down before he could do anything rash as Jean Bart piped up.

“And you brought a friend with you? Who’s this?”

“Oohh, a friend?” Ikkaku wiggled a finger as the ravenette rolled his eyes in annoyance. 

“I’m Y/n, a friend of Luffy!” You barged into the conversation.

“Oh, the one that clings to Law whenever he gets into trouble?”

You snapped your fingers at the female, “That’s the one.”

Another member chirped up while pointing to Law's new overcoat, "And he's wearing a new coat? Where'd you get it from?"

"It's nothing." He quickly rebutted, his eyes narrowing on whoever had asked, immediately silencing them. 

"I got it for him." You piped up merrily, much to Law's dismay. He glanced over your way and drew a line on his throat, threatening you with violence if you said anymore, but to his horror, you merely stuck your tongue out and began conversing with the others.

"Really? He's never worn anything we've given him. How'd you manage to do it?" Someone asked. 

"Don't you know," Penguin bumped their arm, "They're childhood friends." 

Shachi and his friend burst out in laughter at their leader's darkening expression.

"Ohhh, that _one_?" Jean Bart's eyes flitted over to you. "I thought that they were dating..." He mumbled.

Another whispered, "I did too! Were they not?" 

"--No, I think she's with that Mugiwara boy.--"

"--Really?--"

"--Shame, Law's a good one.--"

"--No cap--"

The group laughed out loud as they started recalling stories of your childhood friend causing a ruckus with Law. Although it didn’t make the ravenette feel any better, he did enjoy the various emotions that had gone through over face. You were so enraptured by the stories that you hadn’t even noticed the waiter pass out the food. By the time you had, half of it had already been eaten by some of the larger men at the table. At this, you threw your hands up and cussed them out, but only earned yourself a cacophony of laughter as the others watched you in amusement. 

"She's quite the funny one, isn't she, Law?" Someone asked. 

"Don't mistake her humorous side for her idiotic one, Shachi-ya." He grumbled as he took flicked a slice of bread from his plate, grimacing when it bounced back onto it. 

Ikkaku ignored her ravenette friend and leaned over the table to get to you, "You were at Ace's party, weren't you? I'd heard from Shachi that you'd caused an absolute wreck over there!" Jean Bart exclaimed loudly, the drumstick in his mouth bobbing around at his broad gestures. 

"I'm sure that was Ace..." You murmured over the shouting at the other end of the table. 

Ikkaku barged into your conversation and pointed the butt-end of her roasted pork your way, "But weren't you the one kissing Luffy?" She asked as you and Bepo simultaneously choked on your waters. 

That certainly caught Law's attention. 

He drifted away from the convo he was in and redirected his attention your way. 

"I have no idea why everyone's so adamant on talking about that. No, I'm not with Luffy and no, I did not _purposefully_ kiss him. Satisfied?"

"Would you say that your disinterest in Luffy lies in the fact that you're dating our friend?" Ikkaku took a large sip of her water, her eyes calculative as she took you in. 

Your eyes went white as you passed out in your chair, completely freaking out the blonde sitting next to you.

Law's eyes widened on you before a carefully prepared frown curved his lips. He directed a glare towards his friend as he took in your uncomfortable fidgeting. You were clearly off-put by the sudden question, not to mention the various eyes that were pointed your way. 

Law knew the feelings that his friend had for him, but he never acknowledged them because of the odd feelings that he had within himself as well. To him, she was just another girl fawning over him, even though she was within his friend group. Perhaps the reason he had never really paid any attention to her was because of the constant worry over his classes and... well... his problems at home.

He had heard rumors about your 'supposed' relationship with him, but he had never regarded them as anything more than _talk_ until now. It wasn't that he was not interested in them, but rather, the fact that he knew you would disapprove of them, which only prevented him from discussing them with you. 

"A relationship with _him_?" You pointed a chopstick towards him, "I'm sure he'd rather jump off a cliff before he'd be forced into dating me. Besides, " You slung an arm around the ravenette and pressed your cheek into his, "I'm sure he's more devoted to his medical textbooks than anyone around him."

Ikkaku's lips formed a relieved smile as she relaxed at your answer. She was glad that Law had a friend like you at least, someone he could rely on when things became hard... even if she could not. 

When the others began losing interest in the conversation, Bepo turned towards you and striked up a new topic as Law watched in the background with barely concealed interest, unconsciously popping a sautéed onion into his mouth.

He munched on it slowly as you began animatedly recounting your stories to the platinum blonde boy. 

"So, you're childhood friends with that guy Portgas who just came back? Isn't he brother's with your friends Luffy and Sabo?" Bepo asked. 

"Umm," You stroked your chin as you thought on it, "I guess? Rather than friends, I suppose we're more like frenemies, but I wouldn't know for sure. We just started getting to know each other again."

"Really, because the way Law described it made it sound like the two of you were enemies."

Law fixed a pointed glare towards his friend, hissing out through gritted teeth, "Shut up, Bepo."

"Well, I mean we _were_ , but that changed." You laughed awkwardly, completely oblivious to the look that the ravenette was sending towards his friend. 

"So, how do you feel about his return?" Bepo inquired as he emptied an entire plate of sausages, ignoring his friend's threatening glares. 

Instead of arguing back, Law took Jean Bart's glass of beer and downed it in one swing as the other looked at him in horror. 

"Law, that was my beer--"

"You can always just order another. Don't be a prude."

He redirected his attention back to you, curiously awaiting your response to the question as Bart begrudgingly rose from his seat to get another glass, mumbling, "Law's been more of a jerk lately..." 

"Uhh, fine, I guess? I'm not sure, it's not like I hang out with him all the time."

Law rolled his eyes impatiently and stabbed a fork through the meat on his plate, attracting the attention of all around, "I think the question that he meant to ask was, what do you _feel_ for _him_?" He stated in all seriousness, his gray eyes narrowing on your surprised expression. You blinked several times before stuttering out, "As if I'd feel anything other than disdain for that greasy mole rat." The other's laughed at your response.

Although he had expected that response, he didn't anticipate the redness that had rose to your cheeks. This only ticked him off more. 

He hated the pink tint that rose to your face, he hated the way your lips screwed shut as you when you thought about _him_ \--but most of all, he hated how much this was affecting him. 

You were so transparent it was almost funny and he would he laughed if not for the anger he felt at that moment. Just one month around that air-headed idiot and you were already that caught up in him. From Law's perspective, that boy was nothing special. Other than the fact that he was _the_ _Roger's_ son, there was nothing particular about him that stood out.

He took another swig of his alcohol and relished in the feeling of lightheadedness that it gave him.

"Enough, I don't feel like talking about that right now." The ravenette took hold of his bottle and downed the entire thing as the other's moved onto another topic of interest. 

Noticing Law's heavy drinking, Bepo hollered out, "Oh, so we're doing _that_ now? Ayo, Shachi, get the booze!" 

Shachi craned his neck to look over at the scene and split out in a great smile, raising his hands to show his friends the various bottles of booze that he had acquired from the waiter. 

"Hey, Y/n, you want some?" Shachi held a shot out for you, but before you could reject his offer, Law swiped at it and downed it within seconds, completely shocking the group. "L-Law?"

You looked at him in shock before stuttering out, "Nah, I'm good. I'm actually trying to lay off of the alcohol right now, especially 'cuz of what happened a while ago." You meekly responded, rubbing the back of your neck awkwardly as Bepo tossed you a disappointed look.

Law was acting really weird and it was starting to set you off. 

"Oooo, do tell." Penguin leaned in precariously as Law grew ever sour, his brows creasing over his eyes to create this terrifying visage of darkness and death. The other backed off slightly, a single droplet of sweat dropping down his brow from the intimidating aura of the man sitting near you. "B-But you don't have to if you don't want." 

"No, no, It's not a big deal. I just had a little problem holding my booze at the last party and I ended up in someones bed." 

_Bed?_ Law blinked at that. 

"Woah, woah, woah, wait--someones bed? Who was it?" The group whooped loudly as you said that. Law, on the other hand, was far from impressed. In fact, his mood was growing darker by the second. 

"Uhh," You tossed a glance at Law's way, only to find his eyes averted from yours and his expression twisted into a sour look, "Kids..." You murmured out in humiliation. 

Law's cool demeanor nearly cracked--nearly being the keyword. He barely contained his shock and anger as he reeled in the bitter words that he was about to release, glad for the sudden distraction when the other's began bombarding you with questions. Several of them had asked if you had lost any limbs while others asked what it was like to walk into the monsters den. Although you were vague with your answers, the ravenette knew something more had happened. Had something bad actually happened, you wouldn't look as puzzled as you were now.

He had no idea what to make of your expression. Not only did he have to think about Ace, but not he had Kid to fret about. 

What the hell was going on?

His dark eyes went over to you, narrowing when you nervously glanced away from the others. 

How had you ended up at Kid's place? Why didn't he know about this?

The group went silent at your words as another began making cricket noises. 

"You mean Kid, the _Eustass Kid_? The one that everyone thinks is a murderer--"

"I'm pretty sure he's a murderer." Another interrupted. 

"The one and only." You admitted in hesitation.

"Say no more..." Ikkaku pulled her hand up, stopping you mid-sentence as she continued with, "You must be suffering from horrible trauma from that experience." 

"Speaking of Kid," You suppressed another roil of trembles, you got out, "Have you ever met someone that exuded so much dominance that your crown jewels retreated into your body? Well, yeah, that's what happened today when I met up with that lunatic." 

"But you don't even have balls," Bepo brought up.

"Exactly," You pointed a finger at him, "Exactly that. He's so terrifyingly terrifying that my nonexistent balls shriveled up inside of my body." 

The group shivered with you as Law continued to stare at them in annoyance, his eyes nearly falling back into his head with how hard he was rolling them. 

You shivered as you thought about the hot-headed red-head, but were quickly stopped when the ravenette looked down at you, an unimpressed frown marring his face. "What were you doing there?" He asked, his voice deadly low as his demeanor became oddly calm. 

You tensed up at his words and added, "Well, surprisingly nothing happened. I mean, I was drunk and he happened to be there. Not much more to say on that."

The thought of you at Kid's house was somehow worse than Ace's. who knows what had happened to you there. Who knows if that barbarian put his hands on--

His inhaled deeply before collecting himself once more, setting those sharp, gray eyes of his on you. 

"You could have gone to any one of my friends for help--or me." He folded his arms over his chest as he said that. 

Your lips quirked up as you pointed a finger his way, "You weren't even at the party and even if you were, how on earth did you plan to carry me with those skinny little muscles of yours? At least Ace had more, which was saying something." You sidled up by him and took hold of his biceps, giving them a firm squeeze as the other quite literally tense up at your touch. 

An electric shock went down his body as he took hold of you wrists.

The group went wild at your insults, laughing loudly when they started poking fun at their friends lean form. They knew he was stronger than all of them combined, but that didn't mean they couldn't have a little fun. Though, they had to admit, Law was quite a bit skinnier than Kid--or even Ace, which was something that had angered him from time to time. 

Having grown up with Law, you were much more comfortable with being yourself around him--unlike Ace, but you hadn't realized how far you had gone until he had taken you hostage and whispered with a sly lift of lips, "Oh, we're playing that game, are we? Well, since we're doing that, let me remind you that you're always chasing after those three airheads, which isn't much better. Tell me, how's the view from back there? Lonely?"

You swallowed down painful retort and snapped back with, "Better than hanging around a gloomy brat like you--somehow, you always brought down the mood."

"Aww, that's cute." Bepo beamed in glee, breaking the two of you out of your bickering as he uttered, "You guys are just the sweetest couple."

Law nearly wretched right then and there--but maybe that was because of all of the alcohol he had consumed. However, your reaction was much different. You were holding onto your stomach and bursting out in laughter at the suggestion, annoying the group of customers right behind of you as you tipped back dangerously on your chair. 

"As if I'd drop my standards that low," Law scoffed indignantly.

You wiped a tear from your eye and stopped your fits of laughter as you pointed a drumstick his way, "Oh, come on, Torao. Dating me isn't all that bad. Once you get used to annoyingness, you should be well off!" 

As you were busy teasing the ravenette, the two of you hadn't even noticed the waiter come out with a cake. When he placed it in front of the birthday boy, the group started whooping and shouting, chanting 'wish, wish, wish' as a vein protruded from Law's head. 

He pinched your lips together, silencing you as you pathetically mumbled, "I wansh cwake," which translated to, ' _I want cake_.' 

He glared at his friends and stated, matter-of-factly, "You know I don't like cake, it's practically bread." 

"But we spent a fortune on it!"

"Come on, Law! At least take a bite."

"No."

"Sore loser! Then, make a wish!"

"I wish for all of you to die."

"Lameeee~"

You looked up at the male with glittering eyes, " _Yeash, you shwould at leassht take a bshite! If yoush aren'tsh going to eatsh it, let me stake it hwome so that Ludffyy and Sabosho can have shome!"_

_'Yeah, you should at least take a bite! If you aren't going to eat it, let me take it home so that Luffy and Sabo can have some!'_

He cringed at your indecent display and released you before returning his attention to his friends. "I already said no, don't make me repeat myself." 

And yet, something inside of him begged for release... Why were you thinking about Luffy and Sabo when you were with him? He did not like that one bit. 

He raised a brow and looked at your pleading face, "But, if you're so adamant on eating some of my cake," In the spur of the moment, he took hold of a slice and lifted it, "then why don't you have some."

"Really?" You looked at him hopefully, which only fed into his guilt as he raised the piece higher.

"Why, of course." Then, to everyone's surprise, he smashed it into your face, chuckling deeply when you sputtered out bits of whipped cream into your plate. 

You wiped away the icing and the cake and pointed a dirty finger his way, earning the attention of everyone, "Oh, you're approaching me?" You declared in a Dio-esc voice.

Bepo slammed his hand down and excitedly shouted back, "Dio! That's a Jojo reference, that's a Jojo reference!"

You smiled at the other and laughed as you repeated, "Jotaro!" ,before retailing as you picked up the rest of the cake and tossed it onto Law's face. 

The group looked at the two of you in visible confusion. 

"JoJo reference?" Some of them repeated to the others, disappointed when all they received was a shrug. 

You gave them no time to lament on it when you stepped on the table and pointed down to the sullied man, proudly declaring "That's what you get for caking me, jerk! And Happy Birthday!" 

Everyone except for Law burst out in laughter as they witnessed their friend quite literally drip in excess cake fluids. Law growled out in anger and took the smudges of the sweet confection and smeared it into your face before promptly putting you in headlock to prevent you from escaping. 

He knew only Ace would do something as stupid as this, but he wasn't feeling like himself right now, especially when he was around you. He just felt... free to do what he wanted, like he could act on his more childish tendencies without consequence. He could certainly chalk it up to your constant chattering about Ace, but he didn't want to hear about that airhead right now. He was already feeling good and he was damned if he was going to let go of the feeling. He was a selfish man, after all. 

You were squirming around in his arms, shouting at the top of your lungs for your release as the other only held you in a death-grip. He only let you go when you begged for your release, satisfied by the response that he had elicited from you. As you began bickering with the other and wiping off bits of cake from yourself, Ikkaku and the rest of the group watched in morbid fascination. Somehow, when Law was around you, he had changed dramatically, as if he was a new person. sure, he was still as grouchy as ever, but there seemed to be a glimmer in his eyes that lacked whenever he was around his friends. Maybe it was because you were a childhood friend that knew him better than anyone or maybe it was because he was more comfortable around you, but Ikkaku knew exactly why. It pained her to admit this, but she was glad and she knew the others were as well. 

As the night began to wind down and the other's were getting tired, that was when the alcohol in Law's system had decided to take control. As everyone was walking out to depart for the day, Bepo and Penguin had to hold up their drunk friend and get him to the car. Oddly enough, he was clinging to you adamantly all the way to it, his arms wrapped tightly around your waist as he brought you into a bear hug, mumbling something about a 'teddy-bear' as the others dragged him away. It took them quite a while to get you free, but when they did, you thanked them with great fever, putting some distance between yourself and the unconscious ravenette. Once they offered to take you back to your dorm, you hopped into the back with Law, who had promptly laid his head on your shoulder and went fast to sleep. 

Much to your embarrassment, Shachi and Bepo began laughing, their eyes crinkling in humor at their friend's personality change.

They stated that whenever he drank alcohol, he would undergo a massive personality change. As shocking as it was, you didn't hate it--it was a good look on him. 

You draped your dirty coat over his lap and fell asleep as well, gaining the attention of the other two up ahead. Once they arrived at your dorm, they shook you awake and carefully peeled their sticky friend from your shoulders--with much difficulty, but when they did, you slipped out and bid them goodbye. 

Before leaving, you leaned in and whispered happy birthday to the other. Though he stirred in his sleep, he didn't wake up. You were glad for that.

As you bid the others goodbye, you stepped into your complex and stepped into your dorm for a shower. Once you did, you shrugged on your jammies and went to bed, falling asleep within seconds. 

_______________

You woke up early that morning and stretched before reaching over for your phone, unplugging it from its wire to check at the lock screen. 

Nothing. 

You sighed as you slipped out of your bed and got ready for the day, meeting up with your friends at the bottom for a nice breakfast. You'd need one after the events of last night. 

When you met up with them, you took out your phone and flipped through your contacts, biting down on your lip in contemplation when you saw Laws. Ace stepped out of his group and immediately spotted you standing near the bushes like a weirdo. He flagged you down with a wide grin and stalked your way, his hand waving feverently in your direction. You clicked your tongue and glanced away even as he ruffled at your hair affectionately, immediately gaining him a small smile. 

You turned away from the freckled boy and huddled over your phone.

Should you contact him? You were quite worried after all. Having never seen him drunk before, you were worried that he had gotten into some trouble with his friends. Of course, you knew you could rely on them to take of him, but you were scared that he might have tripped and died on a cord to the way to the bathroom to take a piss or something.

Determinedly, you clicked on his icon and lifted the phone to your ear, hearing the tell-tale ring as you awaited his response. Four of five tries later, you heard a gruff voice on the other end pick up, their voice low and grizzly from their lack of sleep.

You suppressed a shiver as they asked, "Who's this?"

"Who do you think, _boyfriend?_ It's your loving, _girlfriend_ , teddybear! I was worried about you, pooh, how are you feeling this fine morning?" You heard the line crash and zing on the other end as you broke out in laughter at the ravenette's reaction. 

After all the things he had mumbled the other night, you were surprised he hadn't even remembered whispering words like 'girlfriend' and 'teddybear' to you. You were damned if you were going to let that go. 

Ace froze up like a deer in headlights and did a complete 180 on you, his eyes ablaze with barely concealed jealously.

"Boyfriend?!" Ace's eyes snapped over your way as your friends noticed his darkening expression, but before they could get to him, he was already marching over your way, prepared to snatch your phone and declare your relationship status with the other. "Not on my watch! Who the hell is this guy? I just want to have a talk with him real quick."

You laughed loudly and side-stepped the other, but to your avail, he took hold of you phone and slyly responded with, "Y/n's husband here, who's this?"

Ace put the phone on speaker and held it in front of you with a smug grin, as if to say, 'That boyfriend of yours is no more once I have my way with you'. 

You grew as bright as a tomato and nearly self-combusted if it weren't for the gruff, and slightly irritated voice on the other end of the speaker phone.

Although you were baffled by his words, that didn't stop you from trying to get your phone back. Unfortunately, the ravenette was a quite a bit taller than you, thus having the advantage of height that worked out to his favor. 

"It's seven in the fucking morning. What the hell do you think you're doing?" He growled through the other end.

"Actually, it's nine, but I thought I'd call you up for last night. Although, I'm starting to I see that you're fine, so I'll be hanging up now!" When you made a swipe to press the decline button, Ace held the phone out of reach and shot you a shit-eating smirk as he lifted the speaker to his mouth. 

You heard the shuffling of a bed on the other end and a drawn out growl as the other murmured, "Don't call here again unless it's an emergency. And Ace, fuck off. You're voice is grating my ears."

You were glad that he'd at least recovered from last night and went back to normal, but somehow, he sounded far more... aggressive than usual...

"Aw, isn't her worry so heartwarming? Now, if you don't mind, I have quite the agenda with my little Peep Peep here, so if you don't mind. Oh, the things I'll do with her." With a gleeful grin, he pressed the end call button and tossed the phone back to you. 

"Now," He wrapped an arm around your shoulders and drew you close, "What's this about a boyfriend I hear?"

You swallowed the lump in your throat and shot him a nervous smile.


	28. Mugiwara Hangout~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I admit, this chapter was poorly written, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless. T_T
> 
> I promise the next one will be better! 
> 
> Mostly 'cuz Pudding's going to show up again...

The first thing you did was wake up, take a shower, and eat a croissant that Nami had left out. The second thing on your agenda was to hunt down Luffy and smother him with your love since no one else would accept it. The third was to visit the nearest dispenser to get your daily dose of strawberry milk. And the fourth--well, you hadn’t exactly anticipated the fourth to happen. 

The first thing you saw as soon as you walked out of your dorm was Ace. He was idly strolling by with Marco, fooling around with the other as you walked by the two of them in confusion. The second time, you were prowling down the stairs to the floor below and you saw him chilling by the nearest classroom with another friend. He still hadn’t noticed you. The third time you saw him was when you were going over to Luffy’s place and by the time he’d finally seen you, you had already run away to the nearest building. When he saw you the fourth, fifth, and sixth time, he was the one running after you like an absolute monster. I mean, he was going after you like his life depended on it, as if he were a dog chasing after a scrap of meat. 

You were about to go insane. Were you hallucinating his presence or was this all happening in real time? And why was he so adamant on catching up to you? Didn’t you just see each other the other day? Why was he acting like he hadn’t seen you in over a hundred years?

You clutched at the strands of your hair and anxiously looked over your shoulder as you snuck to your next class, your bag over your head to conceal your face. 

After attending your last few periods and evading the prowling ravenette, you were completely exhausted and unaware of the presence lurking behind of you. Thankfully, it had only been Luffy when you turned around. 

You wrapped an arm around his shoulders and squeezed him against you as he whined out loudly. For all his complaining though, the boy couldn’t help but wrap his arms around you as well, pressing you tightly to his chest while laughing merrily to the top of his lungs. 

“Geez, you scared the living daylights outta me, Luf!” You pressed a hand to your heart and laughed out breathlessly. 

“ _Shishishi_ , you’re easy to scare, aren’t ya?” The other poked at your nose. 

The two of you devolved into laughter as he shot out a joke, keeping you oblivious to the second body slowly creeping up behind. 

You were reminded of your hangout with the Mugiwara’s when you looked down at the message on your phone. 

“Oh, yeah, Luf, when did Zoro tell us to come over? Weren’t we all planning to chill over at his place today or was that some other day?”

“I’m sure it’s today… and even it isn’t, I’m still going. I just finished my classes and I have nothing to do so I might as well just annoy Zoro.”

“I see.” You stroked your chin, “Does annoying Zoro help relieve stress? I feel like I’ll end up in a body bag with lacerations all over my body if I did that…”

“Don’t worry about that.” He swatted your shoulder, “And besides, even if we get beat up by Zoro, I have a getaway man to help us get out of that situation!”

“Getaway man?” 

“Yeah!--Oi, Ace!” He turned around and gestured to the male lurking near a balcony up ahead. You felt your heart stop in your chest as dread creeped up your veins. 

He was everywhere. Maybe you weren’t going insane. Maybe he really was everywhere you were. 

As soon as you saw his face, you pulled up your hood and yanked at Luffy’s sleeve, hissing out, “What the hell is wrong with you, Luffy. Why’d you bring him here? That’s your getaway man?? You could have at least asked Sabo or some other person! I thought you were joking about the whole thing with Zoro anyways, why’d you have to bring him along?” 

“What’s the problem? You’re friends, aren’t you?”

“No, we are not!” You glanced over at him again, a large grimace on your face as you whispered, “The last time I saw him, he burned a chunk of my hair! If he thinks I’ll forgive him that easily he has another thing coming for him.” You raised a shaky fist in the air, ultimately attracting the other’s attention to your incessant yelling. 

When the elder ravenette spotted you crouching by his brother, his eyes widened and a great smile split his face. 

“Yo, Peep! Long time no see.”

\--But before he could hop over the banister and get to you, another girl tugged on his sleeve, redirecting his attention from you over to her. His smile dropped as soon as your face twisted in a maniacal way, as if you had some devious plan in mind. 

“Hey, Y/n! Stop running away--Fuck, that conniving little brat!” He slammed his fist down on the metal end of the railing. 

You smiled at the sudden interruption and grabbed Luffy before sprinting out of there, leaving the man a very smug grin as you split for the nearest building. 

He impatiently smiled down at the girl and asked, “Sorry, Jes, I would really love to stay behind and talk more about Spongebob with you, but I really must get going.”

"But we were talking about biology..." She corrected.

"Right, biology." He scratched at his head awkwardly, laughing loudly when she shot him a weird look. 

“O-Oh,” She looked down hesitantly, her cheeks blooming a bright pink as she stuttered out, “I-I won’t take up much of your time, I just wanted to… umm…” She twiddled with her fingers before pulling out her phone and shoving it to his chest. She yelled out, “M-May I have your number?”

He'd been caught off guard by that. 

The ravenette’s eyes widened as they darted between her open phone and her bowed head. This was all happening way too fast for his liking. As much as he wanted to race after you, he knew he couldn’t just brush this girl off and deny her. At the same time, he couldn’t just waste his time here. Every moment he was entertaining Jes was a moment lost going after you. 

His foot bounced impatiently on the floor as his eyes flitted between your rapidly shrinking form and the girl in front of him. 

In a split-second decision, he gingerly patted her on the head and blurted out the horrible excuse that his father had taken his phone because of his indecent behavior and bad grades. 

Sure, that was an excuse that a twelve year old may have used to get himself out of a tight situation, but he had no time to waste. 

“Look, we can talk more about this later, but I have something to tend to. Another time, perhaps?”

“S-Sure.”

“Splendid. Until then.” He tipped his hat down before hopping over the banister and sprinting straight for you. 

Although you were a full mile away from him, it took Ace absolutely no time to catch up to you thanks to his superb leg muscles. Within minutes, he was right behind your ass and as terrifying as a death reaper after a stray soul. 

You held onto Luffy tighter and pumped your legs even harder as you started yelling at the top of your lungs. 

“Are you monitoring me 24/7? Why do we always run into each other?” You looked over your shoulder and hollered back at him. 

The ravenette merely held down his hat to keep it from escaping and continued to run after you, a large smile splitting his face at your terrified expression. “I know, I’m amazed too. Why do you always catch my eye? Why don’t you stop running now? I’m starting to get tired!”

“As if I’d agree to that! Who knows if you’re going to murder me on the spot, you stalker! And I'm growing tired too, so why don't you stop chasing after me and give me a break!” 

“Why are you running then? I thought you promised that you would stop that!” He yelled back.

“Because I’ve seen you like a thousand times today! What makes you think I want to see your ugly mug anymore? Tell him, Luf! And, I hope you know, I’m still fucking pissed about what happened the other day!” 

Luffy threw back his head and laughed at the interaction. “How long has it been since the two of you have really talked like this? Eight years? I’m fine with just enjoying the show.”

“You’re hopeless!” You hissed back, “Why don’t we just leave him and go to Zoro's? Why’d you have to come and bring him with us?”

“Because he insisted.” Luffy shrugged, “And I thought that our group might want to get to know him more.”

“Didn’t they already introduce themselves during that one dinner hangout? Why does he need to come again? We’ve already hung out with him several times the past month!”

“Oh, come on, Peep, don’t say you’ve already gotten tired of me.”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying! Your presence drives me insane!”

“Insane with affection? Insane with need? Insane with love?”

“You’re going to make me vomit, you imbecile.” You deadpanned. 

When the ravenette finally caught up to the two of you, you stopped in front of a pole and held your hands out in surrender, keeping the other at bay as you thought of what to do next. You could either toss Luffy off and call him deadweight or you could use him as a shield to get away, either way, you needed to think of something fast if you wanted to get away. 

“Wait--Wait.” You bent over and took in several deep breaths to stabilize your heart rate again. “Give me a second. I don’t think I’ve ever worked out this hard before. J-Just gimme a moment.”

“Oh, of course. I’ll just stand here and wait for you--As if I’d really say that! No mercy for the weak!” He chuckled manically as he lunged for you.

“I’m sorry, Luffy.” You cried out as you pushed him towards his brother, using him as leverage as you spotted a nearby building to escape to. 

“Y/n?!”

When you took that opportunity to make your getaway, you spotted a black vehicle parked nearby and by the looks of it, it appeared to be one of your friends. By the tell-tale brand, you knew exactly who it belonged to.

Luck was truly on your side today--even if you abandoned your friend. 

With renewed vigor, you dropped everything you had and ran straight for it, knocking on the window viciously all the while screaming for them to open their window.

“Oh, thank go--” You looked over your shoulder and nearly screamed from the terrifying visage right before you.

There he was, an 180 pound man running straight for you in nothing but a pair of shorts and a cowboy hat, running at about 100 miles per hour, looking like a hound straight from hell. 

You banged on the window more incessantly now, begging for them to open it. When they finally did, you reached in and pulled the lock before hopping into the passenger and closing it behind of you, watching as the other two stopped straight in front of the door. You stuck your tongue out before leaning back and taking a deep breath. 

“Punch it, Torao! Go, go, go!” 

Law covered his ears and grimaced down at you as he attempted to drown out your incessant cries. 

“Y/n-ya, what the hell do you think you’re doing? I’m in a rush to get to the hospital, so when you’re done giving me your reason, then get the hell out.”

When you reached over to take the shift-stick, he grabbed your wrist and sent you a dark glare, his cold hands repelling you from moving any further. 

“Don’t be like that.” He pushed you away when you started patting his shoulder aggressively. “You just saved me from a potentially deadly situation, my hero!”

“Do you mean that deadly situation?” He nodded his head towards the two ravenettes panting heavily outside of his car.

Ace released his brother and cupped his hands around his eyes to take a peek into the tinted glass. When he couldn’t see anything, he exhaled onto the surface and drew, ‘I know you’re in there. Come out, come out, wherever you are.’ 

You shivered in your spot. 

‘What a creep.’ 

“What nonsense.” The ravenette muttered as he put the car into park. “Get out, you’re wasting my time.”

“T-Torao, you can’t just kick me out like this.” You grabbed at the sleeve of his coat. “I know you aren’t that mean. I just need a quick lift over to Zoro’s. You don’t even have to take Luffy or Ace, they’ll just walk there themselves. So, please--”

His clicked his tongue and looked away. “Zoro’s place?”

You nodded.

“And Ace is going with you? What for?” He asked again, only this time, in a more inquisitive tone, as if he had some underlying motive for questioning you on this.

“Originally we were just going to go to Zoro's to chill, but Luffy, being Luffy, had to drag in his brother and make it more chaotic than usual. Sometimes, I question why he does the things he does...”

Law eyes narrowed on you. 

Somehow, it was as if an opportunity had fallen into his lap... He'd be damned if he let it slip away. 

The ravenette took a moment to think about it before sighing heavily, his sharp eyes turning your way. “Fine.”

“Really?!” You grasped at his sleeve.

“I said fine, don’t cling onto me.” He shoved your fingers aside and put the car into drive. 

You were thankful that he’d miraculously been there to rescue you. Had he not been there, you might have been bait for that lunatic older brother of Luffy.

With a sigh, you pushed your hair aside and sunk lower into the chair, relishing in the warmth of the heater as the other started pulling out, but before he could even move the vehicle, Ace rounded to the front and slammed his hands on the roof of the vehicle. His brows were creased over his eyes as he pointed to the driver. “I’m not moving until she comes out.”

You stared, wide-eyed at the crazy idiot. 

“That stubborn bastard.” Law growled

He pressed the horn and revved the engine again, but to his annoyance, the other male refused to budge. In fact, he persisted by pressing his hands deeper into the metal, causing it to groan under the pressure of his fingers. When the male next to you tired of this charade, he turned off the car and stepped out with a growl.

“Wait, Torao, you're just playing into his hands!”

“That’s your problem, not mine.”

Ace cockily turned his head to the side and patted his hands down, smiling at the other widely. “You’re the last person I expected, _Law_. Odd to see you helping her so willingly.”

“Get out of my way, Ace-ya, I won’t ask again.”

Ace merely smirked at the other's darkening expression.

“Guys, guys, let’s not be hostile here, and Ace--,” You pointed a finger his way, “As much as I’d like to see you get beat up, I’m not in the mood to watch anything violent. After that meet up with Kid yesterday, I’m quite stressed and in need of some Luffy time, so please, just lay off.” 

“Gladly,” Ace flourished his hand out, “Let’s get going. Yo, Luffy, don’t just stand there looking at the sky like an idiot, get a move on.” 

“Oi, Y/n-ya--” Torao called out.

You turned his way and responded with, “Huh?”

“Don’t ‘huh’ me, let’s go.”

“What?”

The ravenette rolled his eyes and took hold of your forearm. “We’re going over to Zoro’s.”

“Wait, what?” Both you, Ace, and Luffy responded simultaneously, but before you could recover, Ace smoothly took hold of your other arm and tugged at it lightly, all the while saying, “I know you’re a busy man, ' _Torao'_ , but I can take care of things from here. Why don’t you just hop off and quite bothering us.”

Law's face creased in annoyance at the use of his nickname. He hated the way it sounded coming from the other male. 

You glanced up at him warily, assessing his thoughtful look before backing off. 

Law rubbed at the back of his neck before awkwardly scoffing, “I owe Y/n after she gave me that coat yesterday.”

“I thought that you said it was shitty--” 

The male cleared his throat loudly, interrupting you half-way through as he wholeheartedly stated that it was a thoughtful and expensive gift that you had gone all out to get. 

Ace’s expression went from surprised to annoyed in two seconds flat. 

“Let’s not forget the fact that you decked me with a cake. And here I thought that the whole ordeal with Kid was bad...” You whispered as an after-thought.

“Cake? Coat? Kid? You guys were out together yesterday? And you were with Kid?” Ace’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head as he processed that.

Before you had a chance to prepare yourself, the male wrapped an arm around you and playfully growled, “I might just have to keep you by my side 24/7. How can I trust you not to get into trouble if I’m not around?” He smiled down at you maliciously, “And how did these things happen, exactly?” 

“You’re the one always getting me into trouble-- and get your sweaty arm off of me.” You pushed at him. “Also, I’m under no obligation to explain anything to you.”

“I suppose not, but your lack of explanation might end with consequences later.” 

The subtle meaning under those words swirled in your mind as you cringed away from him, your face blooming a bright red. “C-Consequences? Don’t be an idiot. It’s none of your business anyway.”

“I’ll let it go… for now. So, how about we get a move on? Aren’t you in a rush to get to Zoro’s?”

You swatted at Ace’s arm and glared up at him. “I’m not going anywhere with you. I’d rather cut off my arm then go with you!”

“There’s that attitude again.” He smirked, “So, you’d rather have that depressing bastard take you?”

“Yes.” You stated matter-of-factly. 

Law glanced over at the other, a barely concealed smirk on his face, annoying Ace to no end. His eye twitched in mild irritation as he took in your glare. 

“After you burned my hair, you must be insane to think that I'd go anywhere with a psychopathic arsonist like you!” 

Ace ruffled the uneven hair and chuckled, his laugh turning into a full-blown belly laugh as you yanked his hand away again. 

The male merely stood his ground and smirked down at you as you pounded your fists on his chest. “I’m angry at you, asshole! How dare you fucking laugh--Do you want me to wipe that smile off of your face?”

Ace pressed his hand to your forehead and easily pushed you away as you continued to scream up at him. 

“Now, now, don’t be so hasty, Peep. It doesn’t even look that bad. In fact, I think it suits you."

“You burned half of my hair off, you jerk, why the hell would it look better! You could’ve just thrown the cockroach away before burning it!"

“It’s not that bad,” He said as he patted down your choppy hair, “Besides, back when we were children, you shaved my entire head while I was sleeping. Why don't we just call it water under the bridge?”

“No, I won't let bygones be bygones! After I shaved you, you shaved a penis design on the back of my head as payback! I got screwed over twice!”

He leaned in, a great cheshire smile on his face, “Be careful of what you say, some people might get the wrong idea--And I thought the penis design was phenomenal. Almost Michelangelo level.”

“You’re the only one who’s going to get the wrong idea, you idiot, and don’t lean in so close to me, it’s making me angrier. Your whole face is making me even more pissed--Your big fucking forehead and your stupid freckles.”

He pressed a hand to his chest, pretending as if you’d mortally wounded him with your words, “Shots were fired!” He laughed, receiving a harsh slap to the side of his arm as you stormed off to Law’s side with a large pout on your face. 

Once he recovered, he leaned over and asked, “Say, why don’t I make it up to you then?”

You were caught off guard by that question. 

“Make up for it?”

“For the hair, dumbie. What else?”

You crossed your arms and thought about it.

That certainly didn’t sound like a bad proposition, even if it was coming from him. 

“How?”

“Ask for anything you want.” His brow lifted when he said that.

“Anything?”

“Absolutely anything.” He repeated.

You stroked your chin.

There was nothing you wanted from him… and yet, you couldn’t just let this opportunity slide away. When would you ever get a chance to ask him for something like this again?

After a minute of thought, you finally decided on what you wanted. 

With a wicked gleam in your eye, you demanded that he not lay another finger on you. Although he was shocked by the request, you knew he couldn't deny it, even if it crushed him to the core. 

“If that’s what you want, then by all means, I accept.” 

It wasn’t that his hugs or his little hair ruffles made you uncomfortable, in fact, it was quite the opposite. You hate how normal if felt, how warm it made you feel inside. You didn’t like the way that his touch made your skin tingle or the way that his looks made you feel.

You hated it because of how vulnerable it made you feel...

You ground your foot on the floor and looked up at him definitely, “Good! Luf, Torao, let’s go.”

“Okay! See’ya later, Ace!” Luffy waved at his bewildered brother while Law smugly smirked at the other ravenette. Ace’s expression exponentially darkened at that. 

Sure, even if you yelled at him, that wasn't enough to warrant his anger--if anything, your little tantrums and fits of anger were cute, but Law’s smirk was anything but. He wanted to smack his pasty ass face for having the audacity to think that you’d sided with him.

“Wait,” Law gestured to Luffy, “I’m not taking him. Knowing him, he might just destroy the entire backseat on a whim.”

You back-pedaled from the other and took one towards Luffy, wrapping your arm around his shoulders as you declared, “Well, if you’re not taking Luffy, then I’m not going.”

Law rolled his eyes before looking away, an annoyed expression on his face, one that didn’t go unnoticed by Ace. 

“Traffy, don’t be stubborn.” Luffy followed your example.

You hadn’t expected Law to agree so easily with you when you tugged on his arm and gave him a stupid excuse. Maybe it was because of the half-assed puppy eyes you were giving him, but you were glad that he'd given in. 

Law agreed for a completely 'nother reason though...

Even if all he could see was the top half of your poorly burned hair and the bags under your eyes, he still relented, for some unknown reason. It was better than letting that sweaty, air-headed idiot take you there. 

This gave Ace an odd feeling in his stomach, one he knew he had to act upon unless he wanted to see you walk away with that lanky bastard. 

“Fine, but that thing isn’t coming with us.” Law’s gray eyes slid over to the frowning ravenette. 

“Phew, I’ve been demoted to a thing now? I guess I’m not even human to you anymore.” Ace scoffed loudly as he walked to the opposite side of Luffy. 

“Great-” You started, but before you could get another word in, Luffy declared, “I’m not going unless Ace goes with us.”

At his words, the eldest brother smiled, a shit-eating smirk on his face as Law’s expression grew even darker. You swore you could even see a vein the size of your fist appear on his forehead. 

Law was absolutely done with their shit. He had to handle not one, not two, but three airheads and retain his sanity at the same time. Sometimes, he wondered how Nami was able to do it. 

“For fucks sake.” Law muttered. 

“Luffy,” You whispered, “Don’t be like that.”

“See, what can my little brother do without me?” Ace took Luffy into a neck-hold and smiled gleefully at you. 

“Then, if you guys won’t decide, how about we do this.” You cleared your throat, “Luffy can go with Ace and I’ll go with Torao, that way there’s no trouble.”

“Nope, no, I hate that--Horrible idea.” Ace crossed his arms and shook his head vehemently. 

“Then, how about Luffy goes with Torao and I’ll go… with Ace.” You begrudgingly finished that last part.

Fortunately, Law was the first to reject that idea.

“You leave me no choice then.” You sighed out, concealing your smile under your sleeve when you suggested that you go with Luffy while the other two went together. In almost no time, the two began bickering, going off about how one of them would end up dead if that happened. 

Luffy merely laughed as you were dragged into their argument, ultimately going red in anger when no one would come to a consensus. 

After a while of going back of forth, the four of you agreed to walk all the way over there--in awkward silence. 

Although it was weird, you were glad that Luffy was there to break the tension up when it got too thick. At least there was someone there to keep you sane, even if he was a little air-headed, but, in all honesty, you didn't expect to survive this ordeal unscathed. Law and Ace were like water and oil, they never worked out no matter how hard you tried. Ace was the fiery hothead while Law was that gloomy nonchalant, both were absolutely intolerable together. You were just thankful that Kid wasn't here to worsen things more...

When the four of you got to Zoro’s house, you practically tore away from Luffy and pounded on the door, immediately falling onto Zoro when he opened it. The mint-head grunted out as soon as the two of you fell down on the other, his face twisting in annoyance at you. This sent Ace in a fit of annoyance as he attempted to get at the other. Of course, Luffy held him back before he could do anything, but you knew there’d be more to come. 

As soon as you apologized to the male and helped him to his feet, you walked into the house and beelined straight for Nami, dropping into her arms as you let yourself relax. 

“What took you so long?”

“What do you think? Luffy dragged them with us.” You groaned as you pointed to the two arguing boys near the front entrance. 

Nami took one good look at them and made a small ‘aha’ before going over to lightly stroke at your hair. “Somehow, I’m getting the feeling that Luffy isn’t the one that brought them over.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Intuition.” 

You nuzzled deeper into her arms and made an incoherent sound. Both Ace and Law looked over to you buried in her arms, the two of them growing progressively more annoyed by it. 

You were just glad you didn't have to be around them anymore. Somehow, being with the two of them dramatically shortened your life span. 

You sunk lower into the ginger's hold as you watched your friend beeline for the TV. 

Luffy went over to Usopp and sunk into a couch as he took the nearest playstation control to him. Within seconds, the two were shouting and hollering while playing their game, annoying Nami and Robin to no end. Sanji, on the other hand, was watching Franky tinker with a pot, berating him for not cleaning it properly before using it. 

It all felt so natural and comfortable to you, albeit the two little flies sitting nearby, i.e., Law and Ace. 

Before you could converse with Nami any further, Zoro walked away from his spot at the door and went over to you. He then picked you up by the scruff of your shirt like you would a dog and stared at you with unblinking eyes as he asked, “Oi, make good on that promise you made me.”

You blinked up at him in confusion as Nami rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"He's been talking non-stop about that this afternoon." She groaned. "Zoro, will you just shut up about that already. I already told you that no one's interested in your sword talk."

Sword-talk?

That certainly piqued your interests. 

“Hey, don’t lift Y/n-chan like that!” Sanji lifted his spatula in the air threateningly, but his words were ignored by the brutish mint-head when he leaned into you.

“Wha--Promise?”

“Tell me more about Mihawk, your father.”

“Oh, that.” You sunk into your seat and shrugged, “Not much to say other than the fact that he’s the best swordsman.”

_And an ex-mafia don._

“And he taught you how to fight?”

“Well, if you mean sword-fighting, then yes, but my hand-to-hand combat skills are a little rusty.”

“That’s fine.” He released you before going over to relax on the chair near you. “You want to spar with me?”

You choked on your spit. “Spar? Like fence?”

“You think something as petty as fencing will satisfy me? No, I mean sparring with real swords like real men.”

_But I'm not a man..._

“What if I die.”

“You won’t die.”

“Stop the cap! You’re skills are far better than mine, I’ll get my ass whopped within seconds!”

The mint-head growled impatiently, “It’s a yes or no, but if you agree," He coughed into his sleeve as he quietly whispered, "I’ll let you use one of my swords.”

You leaned over his shoulder and smiled, “Really? Do you really mean that? Once you say yes, you can’t back out of it!”

“I said yes already.”

A chance to use his swords? Hell yes! This was a dream come true!

“Sometimes, I think that I might really be in love with you.” 

“Shut up and get off of me.”

Although he looked as annoyed as he was before, you could tell that he'd lightened up at that. It didn't take much to please him after all. 

Chopper glanced over at Law hesitantly, watching as the steak knife that he was holding onto dug deeper into the table with every passing second. Ace, on the other hand, wasn’t much better. His eyes were constantly moving back to you and every muscle in his body seemed to be straining to keep him glued to his spot. The brunette was afraid that they’d jump on Zoro and kill him at any given moment.

All it took was one wrong move from the other male...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, I might or might not update with a new chapter tomorrow! Be on the lookout!


	29. Mugiwara Hangout~ (Pt. 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter sorta felt rushed 'cuz I had to squeeze in a bunch of shit b4 the next one. 
> 
> Forgive meeee.

After making sure that you’d call him afterwards, Ace was satisfied with leaving you with your friends, even if you were going to hang out with that lanky bastard for a while longer. He felt more or less secure knowing that he’d secured your word, which was far more than what that pasty weirdo could do. Knowing him, Ace had nothing to worry about.

So, for the next week, he’d been idly waiting for your call, but when it didn’t come, he started to get worried. He knew his worries were irrational and a waste of his energy, but he couldn’t help but start fretting when it involved you. 

The ravenette shook out his sweaty bangs and scoffed, running a towel through the strands to get the remaining water out of them. “That idiot, she should know the consequences for breaking her promises...” He scoffed as he tossed his towel down in irritation.

As much as he loved to tease her, Ace knew that she loved to push his buttons as well, it was just a pattern that they had developed over the years. Sometimes, he commended her on her stubbornness and her tenacity to avoid him, but most of the time, it just really pained him. 

His muscles roiled under his thin tank top as he lifted the barbell once more, his arms tensing from the intense workout. Ace flicked a droplet of sweat that had fallen into his eyes as he curled his biceps again, grunting quietly when they started cramping. A group of girls passed by him, their eyes glimmering in impressment at his impeccable physique and his better than average face, but before they could chat him up, the ravenette looked over their way and shot them a warning look. He was in no mood to entertain them, even if they were nice people. 

Once they hurriedly left, he did another couple sets of squats and pushups until he was finally exhausted. It seemed that Marco had also finished his last round with the dumbbells when he saw his friend scrolling idly on his phone, his cheek pressed against his hand as he donned a dazed expression. The blonde scrubbed at his locks with a towel as he made his way over to the ravenette, slinging an arm around his shoulder as he took a peek at the device in his hands. 

“Expecting someone's call?”

Ace broke out of his daze when he heard his friend's voice and pocketed the device within his bag before responding. “Nah, just scrolling through the news. What’s up? Are you ready to go?”

“Just about. Thatch just hopped in the shower right now so I came over to see how you were doing, but man, just when I thought things couldn’t get worse, it did.” The blonde clapped his hand down on the other’s shoulder as he shot him a pitiful look. “You are tremendously whipped, bro. I mean, come on, Thatch is usually the one chasing girls, not you."

Ace shrugged off Marco’s hand and stood up, stretching out his sore muscles before moving over to pack up his gear. Once he was finished putting his things away, he turned towards his friend and scowled at him, “Shut up, man. Sometimes, you say the stupidest shit.” He slung the towel over his shoulder, “I’m going to go take a shower.”

Marco merely laughed at his friend’s antics as he also began packing his things, “I’m not daft, Ace. You don’t think I’ve noticed how you’ve been acting around Y/n? You haven’t been that way since you first met Pudding, and that was over five years ago-yoi.”

Ace clicked his tongue and started walking over to the shared bathroom, “Don’t talk about her when I’m here.”

Marco raised his arms in surrender before sighing out in defeat, “Alright, alright, I got it, but you can’t avoid this forever-yoi. If you really know her as well as you claim, you might want to come clean about things before someone snatches her away before you. She’s far from the most popular, but she certainly has a charm that seems to attract the wrong crowd, you hear-yoi?”

Ace turned around and raised his brow, his face going stoney as he took in the possibility of _someone_ taking you away. It wasn’t that far fetched considering you’d been hanging around that delinquent Kid and the gloomy bastard, Law. Still, despite his well-natured personality, Ace was more than capable of taking what he wanted, not that he would, he wasn’t as brutish as Eustass. On some parts though, he wasn’t totally unlike Kid when it came to what he liked and that was a side of him that he didn’t like to show very often, especially around you. 

The ravenette raked his hair back and blew out a ragged breath before turning over to his friend, a bright grin overtaking his grim expression. “Can you seriously see Y/n going after someone like Law-- or Kid, for that matter?”

“I wouldn’t be so cocky, you can never tell with these things.” Marco scoffed in exasperation as he watched his friend’s fleeting form. “For all you know, Y/n might really be interested in that Trafalgar guy. She seems to have great chemistry with him and if I remember correctly, weren’t they raised together?” 

Ace whirled around and spread out his arms as he declared, “Don’t worry, Marco,” the ravenette smirked, “ _I dare them to try and take her._ ” 

_________________

Ace slung his bag over his shoulder and strolled through the campus absentmindedly, his mind currently distracted by the prospect that you were avidly avoiding him. To say that it was bothering him was an understatement--it really peeved him off-- and the fact that he made a deal to stop ravishing you with his affections was driving him insane. It was akin to watching an adorable puppy from the other side of the glass. You were able to see it in all of its gloriousness, but you were unable to smother it with your adoration. 

The ravenette took out his phone again and gazed at the lock screen sadly. It was a picture of the ASL trio with you idly picking your booger in the background. Granted, it wasn’t the best photo he had in his camera roll and it certainly raised more than a few brows, but he loved it nonetheless. It brought back a certain nostalgia and longing he didn’t know he had. 

With another sigh, Ace unlocked his phone and scrolled down to the contacts until he found Nami profile. 

**Luffy’s hot-headed ginger friend (warning, don’t anger her or you might just die)**

**Ace:** Yo, is this Luffy’s friend?

 **Nami:** If by friend, you mean Nami, then yes. 

**Nami:** What do you want?

 **Ace:** Geez, hostile right off the bat.

 **Ace:** Don’t worry, I’ll get out of your hair in a moment.

 **Ace:** Just curious…

 **Ace:** But do you know Y/n’s whereabouts?

 **Nami:** … 

**Nami:** Why do you want to know that, you stalker?

 **Nami:** Don’t think she hasn’t told me about your stalking habits.

 **Ace:** I wasn’t even stalking her! We just coincidentally met up more than a few times in the past couple of days!

 **Ace:** Besides, what’s so wrong with wanting to see an old childhood friend?

 **Nami:** Right… friend.

 **Nami:** Even if I knew where she was, what makes you think I’d tell you?

 **Ace:** Because I’m charming?

 **Nami:** You might want to get your eyes checked. You might have the whole school fooled, but at least Y/n sees you for what you really are.

 **Ace:** A handsome stud?

 **Nami:** An idiot like Luffy.

 **Nami:** Don’t get me wrong, I’m not acting hostile because I don’t like you, it’s actually quite the opposite. I’m only acting this way because Y/n told me to.

 **Ace:** And you listen to everything she says?

 **Nami:** When it comes to men, yes.

 **Ace:** Ouch. 

**Ace:** Then consider me as one of the ladies. 

**Ace:** You can trust me. Cross my heart, hope to die.

 **Nami:** That’s a hefty promise, are you sure you can uphold it?

 **Ace:** Pinkie promise. ;)

 **Ace:** WOW. I burn her hair once and she treats me like I murdered someone. 

**Nami:** If I’m being honest here, I don’t think she’s really angry with you anymore.

 **Ace:** You think??

 **Nami:** I think she’s trying to find any reason to avoid you.

 **Ace:** Avoid me? What for? 

**Ace:** You’d think someone as handsome as me would be unavoidable…

 **Nami:** It’s laughable that you’re one of the smartest brothers when you can’t figure out something as simple as this. 

**Nami:** You’ll figure it out at some point.

 **Nami:** Until then, you’re on your own. 

**Nami:** Look, at least you’re more trustworthy than that Trafalgar or that Eustass guy. 

**Nami:** I’m not sure where she is, if I’m being totally honest.

 **Nami:** Today is her day off from work and she disappeared right after class, so you’re going to have to ask someone else about her.

 **Ace:** You mean, no one’s seen her at all today?

 **Nami:** No, not really. She disappeared as soon as she got back to the dorms.

 **Ace:** What the fuck--

 **Ace:** That sounds shady as fuck. 

**Nami:** You might want to ask someone closer to her than me.

 **Nami:** Plus, I have a new roommate moving in soon, so I need to get the place tidy for them. 

**Nami:** I don't have time to waste on Y/n rn.

 **Nami:** And she's probably fine. 

**Ace:** But she has no friends.

 **Nami:** You’d be surprised. 

**Nami:** Try contacting Luffy. 

**Nami:** She always spills secrets to him.

 **Ace:** LUFFY?!

 **Ace:** Bastard.

 **Ace:** Right, I’m off.

 **Nami:** I won’t mention this conversation to her.

 **Ace:** Bless your soul, kind woman.

 **Nami:** Okay, okay, just get off now. 

Ace clicks out of her profile and lands on the group chat with Luffy and Sabo.

**ASL trio**

**Ace:** ‘Sup, buttlickers.

 **Ace:** I’ve got a question and if you don’t answer it within 2 seconds, I’m going to send a hitman after you. 

**Sabo:** Why, how nice of you. 

**Luffy:** This is why Sabo’s the nicer brother. :(

 **Luffy:** And he even brought me stir-fry this morning!

 **Luffy:** What did you do for me, Ace?

 **Ace:** Exist.

 **Sabo:** :()

 **Ace:** But that’s besides the point.

 **Ace:** Luffy, I heard from Nami that you might know where Y/n is at.

 **Sabo:** Maybe the reason why she hasn’t told you where she is is because--

 **Sabo:** Wait for it--DRUMROLL.

 **Sabo:** Because she doesn’t want to see you.

 **Luffy:** LMAO

 **Sabo:** Real talk here.

 **Sabo:** You’ve always treated her like an enemy, why the sudden change?

 **Luffy:** I’ve also been curious about that! I thought you hated her guts!

 **Ace:** Hated her?

 **Ace:** The both of you need to get your eyes checked. 

**Ace:** We’ve always been great friends.

 **Sabo:** I can’t tell if he’s actually deluded or if he’s the one who needs to get his eyes checked.

 **Luffy:** definitely the ladder. 

**Sabo:** It’s spelled ‘latter’, Luffy, not ladder.

 **Luffy:** Yeah, that.

 **Luffy:** ADSLJ-- ALIJ

 **Ace:** What.

 **Luffy:** Sorry, I got some grease from my BBQ ribs onto the screen and I tried to wipe it off.

 **Luffy:** And it smeared the keyboard.

 **Sabo:** Luffy, that’s disgusting. 

**Sabo:** Don’t eat while you’re texting.

 **Luffy:** But I’m hungry.

 **Ace:** Okay, back to the topic. 

**Ace:** She might have died.

 **Luffy:** Doubt it. 

**Luffy:** I saw her this morning.

 **Luffy:** I even shared some of my food with her!

 **Luffy:** But now that you mention it, she might actually be dead.

 **Sabo:** WHAT.

 **Ace:** I knew it.

 **Ace:** She always gets herself into these situations when I’m not there.

 **Sabo:** Luffy, elaborate. Don’t just go radio silent.

_Delivered at 10:23 a.m._

**Sabo:** Luffy?

 **Ace:** This idiot.

_Read at 10:30 a.m._

**Luffy:** Sorry.

 **Luffy:** I really had to go poop. 

**Ace:** You done now?

 **Luffy:** Yeah. :)

 **Sabo:** Luffy, you didn’t need to tell us that.

 **Sabo:** I would have been okay not knowing that.

 **Ace:** So, what did you mean by your previous texts?

 **Luffy:** Oh, that’s right!

 **Luffy:** Y/n told me that she was going to spar.

 **Ace:** Spar?

 **Ace:** …

 **Ace:** Holdup… Why does that sound familiar?

 **Luffy:** It should be.

 **Luffy:** Y/n discussed going to the dojo with Zoro the other day. 

**Sabo:** Luffy, why would you tell him that?

 **Luffy:** Why not?

 **Sabo:** Didn’t Y/n tell you not to tell anyone outside of your friend group that?

 **Luffy:** Well yeah, but Ace is my brother!

 **Sabo:** You idiot.

 **Luffy:** Hey :(

 **Luffy:** Don’t be like Ace.

 **Sabo:** You hear that, Ace?

 **Sabo:** Ace?

 **Luffy:** I think he already left. 

**Sabo:** Damn it, Luf.

With a wicked gleam and a pep to his step, Ace was on his way to have some fun with his favorite person… 

_________________

You spread your legs wider and crouched lower as you took on a more defensive stance, preparing yourself for the worst as Zoro came hurtling to you again, his sword raised up to deliver the final blow; but before he could take you down, your rolled to the side and hit the back of his ankle with your wooden katana, laughing out triumphantly when he was temporarily stunned. 

With an opponent like Zoro, there was no such thing as being overly careful. In order to take down someone of his caliber, you needed to be level-headed and quick on your feet. However, you also needed to be able to take him down within the first few minutes or you’d lose your leverage. This was more a game of wit rather than strength; you just needed to outlast your opponent and drain him of his stamina before he’d get the chance to take you down.

Nevertheless, you’d underestimated stamina and his wit, which had been your ultimate downfall. 

Despite his bulky figure, he was also light on his feet, which was a handicap for you. If you weren’t faster than him, then you’d never be able to overpower him, which meant an easy win for him. 

Overconfident because of your most recent takedown, you hadn’t anticipated the other to recover so quickly, so you made the mistake of lifting your sword to his head. 

In a split second, Zoro swiped his leg under yours and quickly disarmed you before he held the butt end of his weapon to your temple.

“You let your guard down.” 

He tossed your weapon to the side as you lay panting on the tatami floor. 

“I know, I know.” You sprawled out on the ground and swiped at the collection of sweat over your brow, “But damn, Zoro, I didn’t think you were that strong. You took me out in five minutes! You were so fast I could barely keep up!--And you moved so swiftly. I’ve never seen someone move so fluidly with three swords before!" You laughed, "Man, I wish I had a fraction of your strength so I’d be able to beat anyone I want.”

Although his expression was stoic, the mint-head couldn’t help the flush of embarrassment rise to his face at your constant flattering. He couldn’t suppress it, especially when you were complimenting him so fervently.

‘What a fucking idiot.’ He thought. 

The mint-head quickly recollected himself and balanced the end of his sword over his shoulder as he looked down at you, scoffing, “Better than my previous opponent. They couldn’t even hold up against me for more than one.” 

“That’s to be expected. There aren’t many who are on your level, after all.” You fanned out your thin cotton, tank top, attempting to breeze out your overheating body while you had the chance. “I haven’t even sparred in years. I’m just impressed I was able to hold out this long without collapsing from my severe lack of stamina.”

He chuckled at that. “Better than most.”

Zoro's chest was moving rapidly as he took in several deep breaths before reaching down to help you up. You gratefully took his hand as you lifted yourself up, groaning loudly when your muscles protested at the sudden movement. 

“Come on,” Once you were up and moving again, the mint-head took several steps back and took up an offensive stance. “Let’s go another round.”

You groaned loudly, “At this point, you’re really going to kill me.”

“Come on, daughter of Dracule, I know you can do better than that.”

How long had it been since he’d found an opponent as quick-thinking and agile as you? Not for a long time, at least, which is why he was so interested in you--and this fight only proved to increase it. 

“I don’t have the same monstrous stamina that you and Luffy have. You’re going to have to give my granny bones a break from time to time.” You picked up your discarded sword and repositioned yourself opposite of the other. 

“Quit complaining and bring it on.” He raised his sword and flew for you again, quietly hissing out, _‘Ittoryu Iai: Shishi Sonson!’_

An hour of sparring later and the two of you were now pooped, you more than the other. Although Zoro was willing to go on, you were tired and in serious need of sustenance. You had no idea how much longer you could keep up with the beastly mint-head. 

With a pathetic wave of your hand and loud groan, you declared your defeat and stood up to take a shower in one of the nearest stalls. 

“Hey, when I’m out of the shower, why don’t we pick up something to eat?” You hollered out to him. 

“You paying?” He gruffly replied. 

“Yeah!” You merrily called out, “I just got my first paycheck, so I’m fine with splurging a little!”

“Sounds good to me.”

“Great!”

You quickly hopped into the stall before you scrubbed yourself down, groaning out in delight when the warm water softened your stiff muscles. Once you were satisfied, you turned the knobs off and changed into a fresh pair of sweats and a hoodie. 

“Good enough.” You pulled your hair into a messy ponytail and walked out of the women's room at the same time that Zoro had walked out of the men’s. He scrubbed at his dripping hair with a towel before tossing a bottle of water to you. 

You gratefully took it, gulping down the contents within seconds as the other packed his things away. 

“Before we go,” You took another sip, “Can we invite someone else?”

The mint-head peered at you through his one good eye, “Better not be someone annoying.”

“Pshh, what makes you say that?” You nonchalantly waved him off before lifting your phone to your ear, listening as the device trilled on for what seemed like ages until the other person picked up.

“Yo, Y/n! Whatcha need?”

“Oi, Luffy! Let’s go out and eat, my treat!” 

“Ohhh! OHH!”

You cringed at the shrieking on the other end. 

“Where are you?”

“I’m with Zoro at the dojo right now. Just meet us at that Italian place you really like.”

“I’ll be there soon!”

“Oh, and don’t bring any surprise guests this time.”

You pressed the end button and pocketed the device before turning over to the swordsman, beckoning him forward as the two of you exited the dojo. Once he locked up, you began walking to the bus station with him, but despite your constant remainders that he was going the wrong way, the two of you ended up getting lost more times than you would have liked. 

When he took five wrong turns in what should have been a simple ten minute walk, you took hold of his hand and dragged him with you to the station. Although he protested at the contact, he made no move to remove your hand, especially when he knew he’d only get lost again. So, he begrudgingly let things go and allowed you to take the lead. It was better than doing his own thing. 

When the two of you made it to the restaurant, you released his hand and wiped the sweat on your shirt, shooting the other a scathing glare at his poor directional skills. At least you made it to the Italian restaurant, you thought, even if you were a little sweaty and slightly frustrated.

When Luffy saw you loitering near the front, he waved you over before lifting up a mangly, gristly looking alley cat to you. 

“Oi, Luffy, what the hell is that sickly looking cat doing with you?” Zoro grunted out. 

“I picked it up from the street!”

The mint-head grimaced down at the beaming ravenette. “Well throw it back, we can’t bring something like that into this place.” 

You pushed Zoro away and moved to the front as you stroked the slightly moist, slightly green cat. “It’s so cute.” You cooed down at the mangly beast. 

“Right!” Luffy giggled as he cuddled the stray closer to his chest. 

“And it kind of looks like Zoro.” The two of you said simultaneously as the mint-head smacked the back of your heads. 

The cat looked up at Zoro with its one good eye and yowled loudly, making a move to scratch his eye out, but Luffy took it out of reach before it could. Zoro threateningly growled back at the cat before he latched onto the two of you and dragged you into the restaurant. 

“Let’s take it to go, I don’t feel like eating in here.” Zoro grumbled.

“Yeah, we can eat outside or something. Plus, I’m sure Luffy doesn’t want to let go of that cat anytime soon.”

“Sounds good.”

When the first two placed their orders, you silently stood behind them, waiting for your turn. That is, until your phone started buzzing incessantly in your bag. Zoro looked back at the source of commotion and glared at you when you didn’t make a move to take it out of your pocket. 

“H-Hold up,” You held it up and swiped through the lock screen, “Can you give them my order, Zoro? I’m going to check these real quick.”

“Fine, but you’re still paying.”

“Alright, alright. Thanks, Marimo.”

You looked down and scowled when you realized who it was.

**Dickles**

**Ace:** Peep

 **Ace:** Peep Peep

 **Ace:** Honeyyyy

 **Ace:** Pumpkin

 **Ace:** Cupcake

 **Ace:** Puddin’

 **Ace:** The longer you don’t answer, the weirder the names get. 

**Ace:** Cereal 

**Ace:** Room temperature milk

 **Ace:** nachos

 **Ace:** cold McDonald’s fries

 **Y/n:** Whatchu want. >:(

 **Y/n:** I’m busy right now.

 **Ace:** That’s cute, but I’m more important right now.

 **Y/n:** I could name 10000000 reasons why you aren’t.

 **Y/n:** Why’d you contact me?

 **Ace:** I missed you, sweaty.

 **Y/n:** You mean sweetie?

 **Ace:** I said what I said. 

**Y/n:**

****

**Ace:** <3

 **Ace:** Where r you.

 **Y/n:** :)

 **Ace:** Don’t just send a smiley face.

 **Ace:** Nvm.

 **Ace:** hehe

 **Y/n:** Hehe??????

 **Y/n:** Hello?

You slipped your phone into your bag with a smile and approached the two again. Once you picked up your food, Luffy snatched the alley cat again and the three of you took off to sit outside and enjoy your meal. 

You lifted your pathetically empty wallet and sighed out. Maybe you shouldn’t have brought Luffy along…

He was the bane to your wallet’s existence. 

As you ate your food in silence, Luffy picked a stray meatball from his pile and dropped it into yours, mumbling a small, ‘eat more, eat more,’ as he continued to chow down on his own. You left out a small portion for the stray and watched it scarf it down greedily as Zoro watched the thing with disdain. 

"Must you feed it?"

"What? It's cute." You shrugged.

"It's cuteness doesn't warrant the food you're giving it."

You shrugged at his comment.

While you chewed on your last piece of bread, you pondered on the events that had gone down over the course of the past month. To really understand where your life went going to shit, you would have to go back to the beginning--and that meant recalling the first moment you saw Ace; which would be at the classroom. After that clown appeared, Kid not only became more aggressive with his feelings, but Torao had also started acting... weirdly compassionate, which was out of the norm for him. What exactly was it about Ace that made them feel so threatened? Was it idioticness or his lack of mannerisms?

Either way, you needed to get to the bottom of this if you didn’t want your life to become any more of a mess.

With a sigh, you popped the last meatball into your mouth and dumped the remains into the trash. When Luffy noticed you were finished, he scarfed down the rest of his meal and took Zoro by the elbow as he followed after you.

Once you were a good distance away from the restaurant, Zoro shrugged off Luffy’s grip on his arm and sidled up to you, pressing a hand on your shoulder as he asked, “We should go out sparring again.”

You winced at the area he touched, hissing loudly when he pressed down on the sensitive spot. When you withdrew from him, the mint-head shot you an inquisitive look before lightly pressing on it again.

“You might fight like a cornered animal, but you have the body of a ballerina.” He scoffed before moving over to press at another bruise near your shoulder blade. 

“Hey--,” You snapped back in humiliation, “If it were any other person, I’d be fine, but you were fighting like a maniac! How am I supposed to come out unscathed when I’m fighting a monster like you? You might want to be a little more gentle next time, you should know how delicate my body is.”

Zoro threw back his head and laughed as he patted on the sore spot, causing you to reel back in pain while shouting at him to ease off. 

‘Was he… laughing?’

You stood back and blinked at the unusual expression of glee on his face as he continued to laugh. Had this not been the first time you'd seen him laugh, you might not have been so surprised, but because of his no-nonsense personality, you rarely got to see this side of him. The man looked so genuinely happy and at ease, even Luffy looked slightly offset by this new change---and so did the alley cat. 

“What part of you is delicate? You might be the most un-athletic in our group, but you can certainly hold up your own.”

You grew red at the unexpected compliment. “W-Why are you acting like that, Zoro? You’re starting to scare me.”

“Same.” Luffy admitted as he stroked the cat.

The mint-head straightened up like a rod and coughed into his sleeve as he recollected himself, mumbling a brash, “I wasn’t laughing, I was coughing.”

‘Right…’ 

“But damn, Zoro, you really banged me up good.” You lifted your shirt up to show him the ring of black and blue bruises rising to the surface. 

He touched one delicately before chuckling, “That’s what you get for being such a shitty swordsman. Maybe if you tried to improve your technique, you might actually have a chance at getting back at me. 

“I thought I was already at my best…” You cried out. 

“Far from it.” 

Both Zoro and Luffy began marveling at your collection of injuries when another person rounded the corner. To the average person, this might have looked like you were getting harassed by a band of misfits, but you knew otherwise--

When Zoro realized who the voice belonged to, his eyes widened in surprise. 

“Y/n.” The voice growled out, deep and full of malice. 

You whipped your head around to the source of the sound. 

Ace was wearing nothing but a pair of sweats and a thin top, as if he’d just gone to the gym to work out. Sabo, on the other hand, was garbed head to toe in a dark cardigan and a scarf that nearly reached his eyes. The two were polar opposites in terms of outfits, but they both donned a shocked expression at your compromising position. 

I mean, who wouldn’t get the wrong idea when Zoro practically had his hand up your shirt? 

“Oh, it’s just Ace.” Luffy flinged a booger towards his brother. “Whatcha doing here?”

“Those bruises, who gave them to you?” Ace’s eyes zeroed in on the score of bruises lining the outside of your abdominal area, his eyes darkening when they landed on Zoro. When you realized what he was looking at, you pulled down your shirt and asked, “This is too much of a coincidence, don’t you think?”

‘ _But wait, hold up._ ’

How’d he even find you in the first place? You didn’t reveal your location and you were sure you hadn’t passed by the campus, so how did he…Then it occurred to you.

“Is that what you meant by ‘hehe’ in the texts?” You growled out.

The ravnette's frown eased into a lazy grin as he took in the meaning of your words, "And if I said yes, what would you do?"

You copied Luffy and nonchalantly began cleaning your ears out as the other’s eye twitched in annoyance. “Nothing, 'cuz it's too much of a hassle." 

He definitely hadn't expected you to give up at his taunting so easily... 

“You--” He started, but Sabo held him back before he could do anything rash. 

The blonde hesitantly added, “We just wanted to come to the Italian restaurant and we so _happened to run into you_. It's all a massive coincidence, right, Ace?"

The ravenette blew out an exasperated raspberry as a response. 

"Ace, please don’t pick a fight with anyone today, I think we’re all exhausted after what happened a while ago.” 

“You’re going to have to specify on that,” You drawled, “He’s been getting himself into all sorts of trouble.”

\--But before the ravenette could respond to that, a girl suddenly emerged from the corner and came barreling towards them. 

Far too many things were happening for your liking. First, it was the thing with Zoro and then the run-in with Ace, and now you had to deal with a third party. When was your life finally going to start easing up? 

Your attention was snatched away when you noticed the odd looks the brothers were giving the girl. Did they know her or something? 

When you looked over at them, both Sabo and Ace were frozen in shock while the others looked between them in confusion.

“Ace,” The girl’s eyes started watering, “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?” She ran over to his side and went straight in for a hug, her lithe arms wrapping around his broad mid-section as she buried her head into his chest. “I've missed you so so much.”

When she pulled back, she glanced over at Sabo and wiped the tears from her eyes, “And Sabo, it’s nice seeing you again.”

“Y-Yeah.” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly when the girl went over to take him into her embrace as well. While they continued their odd interaction, Ace just stood there, shell-shocked as he dumbly stared at her before his eyes went icy. 

“Pudding, what are you doing here?” He coldly asked. 

“W-Well, I--,” She bit down on her lip innocently, “Can’t a girl have an excuse to see her boyfriend?”

You choked on your spit as Luffy abruptly dropped the alley-cat, sending it yowling as it attempted to claw at his legs. Zoro, on the other hand, was as indifferent as ever. In fact, he looked mildly bored at this interaction, as if this was the last place he wanted to be right now. 

“B-Boyfriend?” You blurted out before you could stop yourself. The girl’s brown eyes slid over your way, immediately narrowing as soon as she realized you were female. She definitely didn’t like the way you were looking at Ace, especially when he was her man. With a flick of her hair, her expression went soft as she indifferently introduced herself, a sleek smile on her face as she enunciated, “I’m Charlotte Pudding, Ace’s girlfriend.”

Ace’s face morphed into one of seething anger as he took hold of her arm, “We’re not dating anymore, Pudding, so tell me, why did you come back?”  
Pudding merely ignored the ravnette as she glanced over at you, her smile growing even tighter when you averted your gaze, “And who is she, Ace? An acquaintance? A classmate? I must admit, she’s quite a bit younger than any of your previous exes.”

You swallowed the lump in your throat and stood your ground. Who was this girl, exactly? And what connection did she have with Ace? If he said they weren’t dating, then why’d she say she was his girlfriend? Things weren’t adding up here. 

“A childhood friend.” The ravenette put some distance between himself and the brunette, his arms crossing over his chest when she went over to grab at his bicep. The girl awkwardly dropped her arm and chuckled as the other fixed her with an icy glare. 

“I’m Y/n, nice to…” You cleared your throat and awkwardly trailed off when it became abundantly obvious that she was no longer paying any attention to you. 

Something bad had occurred between them, that much you were sure of--And it wasn’t like you were interested, but Ace hardly if ever opened up about anything, so this was the first time you’d seen anything remotely like this happen.

“I can’t say I’ve heard of you before, Ace never mentioned that he had any childhood friends other than Sabo and Luffy. Speaking of,” Pudding hopped over to the youngest brother and took his hand into her own as she vigorously shook it. “You must be that younger brother Ace has always been talking about.”

Luffy yanked his hand out of her hers, an odd scowl on his face as he started rubbing it on his shirt, “Who are you?”

She certainly hadn't anticipated his hostility.

'Maybe he really is as dumb as he looks.' She thought. 

“C-Charlotte Pudding.”

“I’ve never heard of you before.”

“Well, that’s to be expected, we’ve never met before.” She beamed warmly at him before redirecting her attention back to Ace, smiling when he locked gazes with her. “And to answer your previous question, Ace-boo, I came back to start my life anew--the way it should have been.”

Her gaze slid over to you once more, her look calculative as she took in your battered form. 

‘ _Nothing more than a brute in the skin of a girl. She won’t be a problem to me.’_

"Let's get to know each-other once more, what do you think?"

___________________

When you got back to your dorm later that day, you dropped your books onto your desk and fell face-first onto your bed, groaning loudly when you thought no one was around. Of course, a minute later, Nami came walking in with a cup of coffee in hand and Robin in tow. She glanced over at you before looking at the pile of suitcases stacked near the other side of the room. The ginger inquisitively raised a brow, “Hard day?”

“It would appear so.” Robin commented.

You turned around and sat on the edge of your bed as you started up a conversation with the other two, explaining the events that had occurred today. From the time you left the dojo to the time you met Pudding for the first time. 

First impressions were rarely, if ever, good so you didn’t want to judge Pudding based on how she acted around you; and yet, you couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to her than what she was letting on

\--and based on how Sabo and Ace acted around her, there was definitely more going on there. 

Noticing your haggard appearance and tired expression, Robin decided that now was as good a time than any to move onto a new topic. She gingerly patted your head, breaking you out of your thoughts when she gestured to the line of bags near the empty bed. “Are you expecting a new roommate soon?”

“I think so,” Nami shrugged, “Seeing as we’re the only suite dorm with three beds, I suppose the RA wanted to squeeze in another student with us--not that I’m complaining, but it’ll be harder to spill the tea without having to look at our back every twenty seconds.” She huffed.

“I had no idea we were getting a new student, but I’m fine with anything,” You smiled, “I like making new friends, after all.”

Nami shot you a half-assed shrug, “Save that for when you actually meet them. You never know if they’re a backstabbing, two faced bitch.”

“Nami--," Before you could get another word in, you were suddenly interrupted when you heard knocking on the front door. 

How many times were you going to get interrupted today?

The three of you glanced up at the same time, exchanging similar looks when there was another succession of banging, but before one of you could get up and open it, in no time at all, the door burst open and the new roommate walked in. She had her phone and a tub of gloss in one hand while the other clutched at another suitcase. “You must be my new roomies, correct?” Her voice was oddly pitched, as if she was trying her best to sound merry despite the lack of emotion in her voice. 

"Yes, and you are?" Nami carefully asked. 

When she stepped away from the light, you had to keep yourself from gasping out when you recognized her. 

What were the odds that Pudding of all people would be paired with you?

“Bonjour, I’m Charlotte Pudding. I hope we can all get along.” She extended her hand towards you before she even realized what she was doing, but when she had a chance to process the three other girls in the room, she froze, her eyes deftly falling onto you.

“You!” Her faux smile fell off her face, only to be replaced by a barely concealed grimace as the other two looked at her in confusion. 


	30. Recollection

It was your typical Saturday. 

At 8:00 a.m., you woke up, took your shower, and went to work. 

At 10:00 a.m., you bumped into Pudding and had a stare-down with her. The outcome became obvious when she ‘accidentally’ poured piping hot latte over your shirt, but other than that, she made no other move to harm you any further. It was as if she’d do ne it to get a rise out of you, as if she expected you to raise your hand at her.

Bitch.

Although you had no idea what her problem was, you deduced that it had to do with Ace--and as shitty as it was, you had no intention of dipping your fingers into that pot just yet. Whatever business she had with him, she’d just have to resolve it with him herself. 

His problem, not yours. 

At 12:31 p.m., you met up with Monet at your scheduled location. As expected of her, she just talked about Kid the entirety of the meet up, save for the few times she brought up her school schedule and her abroad trip with Ace. 

Typical.

\--but she did ask several odd questions about the other two boys, which certainly raised some questions of your own, but it wasn’t anything to look too deeply into. After all, what intentions did she have for them if she only had eyes for the red-head? Although it may have seemed like that’s all that happened, there were several more interesting occurrences that had occurred while you were still present.

For example, the near peculiar reaction she was able to provoke from Law when they had ‘happened’ to run into each other on the way to the nearest cafe. 

It was odd, albeit a little uncomfortable with the way he was staring at her wide-eyed and in shock, but it wasn’t anything out of the norm--well, for you anyways, but it was concerning, to say the least. 

You’d never seen him look that way, even if he was able to recover in no time at all. It was peculiar, if not a little worrisome, but whatever business he had with her, it had nothing to do with you. Just as you resolved the Pudding issue, you did the same with the Monet one. Going by your motto ‘Ignorance is bliss’, was simply the easiest way to get out of these situations. Sure, it was a little lazy, but who were you if you weren’t a little indolent from time to time? You couldn’t shoulder these problems all by yourself, could you now? There was a time and a place for these things, but right now wasn't it. 

The next week wasn’t any better either…

From your project with Drake to your tutoring session with Law, things weren’t looking good for you, especially when Pudding was involved with them. Much like Monet, she was hellbent on ‘getting to know’ Ace’s friends, no matter the cost. Whether that be rooming with you and Nami or creating plans with them behind your back, she went to all lengths to get closer to them, at the expense of her alone time with Ace. As similar as she was to the mint-head, there certainly was one key difference between the two and it was the fact that you did not like her. It wasn’t because she hogged your time with Ace, but because of the constant insults and the petty gestures she did to make your life progressively miserable--not that it had. If anything, your life was becoming better, especially because her actions were proving to be a catalyst for yours with Luffy. With how she was constantly hounding Ace, it came to no surprise that Luffy would drag you out to hangout with him so he could avoid the eccentric ginger. The same could be said about Zoro, Sabo, and Robin. They had no intention on playing nice with the conniving ginger or spending their free time around her. The other Mugiwara’s were far too nice or enamored--i.e., Sanji--to leave her. 

You honestly didn’t blame Pudding for being so infatuated with Ace. Much like his other brothers, he held a charm that steered everyone to him, even you, much to your reluctance. He always seemed to command the room without asking for attention--it was just given to him--even those who rarely batted an eye to people like Law or Zoro automatically found themselves gravitating toward him, despite themselves. The room seemed to ebb and flow with him as the inconspicuous center. You didn’t know when you got caught in the flow, but you guessed that it might have been when you first gifted his hat to him--hell, it might have even been the first time that you met him. As far as you knew, he was unavoidable. 

To say that you didn’t have any alone time with Ace was also far fetched. He did his best to escape Pudding when he could and used that opportunity to harass you, whether it be in class or at your dormitories. Sometimes, he even went by your workplace to hover around the counter--not that you minded, there were hardly any customers and he was a great source of revenue. On the days that he did, he always made sure to leave great tips for you. 

Nothing could stop this man from getting his way. If he were anything like Kid, he might have had no problem discarding Pudding, but because of his well-natured personality, he couldn’t just go around ‘dropping bitches’ like it was hot. He had a duty to her, regardless of how he felt about her. You supposed that he entertained her because of the guilt he felt, probably due to their grisly breakup. He probably thought that it was his duty to comfort her in some way, that it was his fault that she was like this. You thought it odd, but you didn’t say anything about it, because you were inexperienced in the realm of dating. It wasn’t like you could provide him with sound advice on their complicated relationship. 

Despite the hectic weekend, it was better than your last few and it gave you the time you needed to prepare for the upcoming midterms. Fortunately, this time around, you had the help and the time you needed to properly assemble a plan to tackle this obstacle head-first, even if it meant omitting a bit of your freedom. You would go to any lengths to pass them. 

________________

A week after your hangout with Monet, you found yourself busy with the everyday life of a college student and dealing with your shifts at work. It wasn’t much, but it was enough for now. When Pudding wasn’t with your friends, you were and that was already enough for you. 

Tonight though, you wanted to enjoy some alone time. 

No interruptions. 

Tired from Pudding’s constant presence and the nightmare you had the night prior, you slipped out of your dorm under the cover of night, thankful that your roommates had decided to tuck in early. It wasn’t that you were afraid of being confronted on your way out, but you were hoping to avoid it. 

Looking both ways before sneaking out, you heaved out a sigh of relief when you found no one else around you. Although it was dangerous walking around at night, especially as a woman, you weren’t planning to go that far. In fact, you stopped near a sidewalk and sat down on the curb, all the while pulling your scarf higher up your face to protect yourself from the biting cold. If the afternoon chill said anything about the temperature during October, then the night was worse. It was dark, frigid, and quite frankly, drab. Unlike the Italian countryside where you could see the constellations and the shooting stars, in the city, where your university was, you could hardly see anything other than the occasional star and the blank darkness. Due to the light pollution, looking up to enjoy the view was scarcely worth it, but you did nonetheless. 

It was still beautiful though. You found beauty in the little things in life, whether that be the single star in the sky or the random pigeon on the street. 

You took out your earbuds and plugged them in before pressing the play button on your phone. At once, soft music began streaming out, filling you with a sense of calmness as you let yourself drift into a state of serenity. 

The quietness brought out a more contemplative version of yourself, one that reminisced on old memories and occurrences of the past. 

It also served to remind you of what had gone down earlier that week. So many questions flew through your head. Why had Law acted so odd around Monet? What about her shocked--no, terrified him that much. It couldn’t have been that they had known each other, because then that’d mean that Monet had lied to you about not knowing anyone here. Or maybe, they had just met each other earlier, but that didn’t explain the weird reaction from Law. It was almost as if they were familiar with the other, like they’d known each other longer than just a day. And their interaction was stiff, if not uncomfortable, which was peculiar for a couple of strangers. Whether you liked it or not, you were smack down in the middle of it. Having been caught hanging around the mint-head, Law’s been more attentive of late. 

As much as you wanted to ask him what it was all about, you knew he wouldn’t open his mouth. That’s just who he was, regardless of the person. 

Disregarding the tense situation, the occurrence had reminded you of times long gone, ones spent frolicking in the landscape of Sicily. It brought back memories you thought long lost. 

With a shake of your head, you put the thoughts aside and refocused on the dull thud of the drums in your song. It lulled you once more into a state of calmness. 

_________ * __________

_ You were perched on a chaise lounge, not reclining into the bed-like sofa, but sitting like an owl, your eyes never leaving the flakes of snow fluttering down from the hazy sky. You were absolutely terrified, your body stiff in mortification of the cold as you recalled the not-so distant memories of your time on the streets of Venice. It may have been a year ago, but your body instinctively reacted to the chilly temperatures and you reverted to the hostile, paranoid child you were before. It wasn’t that you hadn’t been cared for and treated by Mihawk, but you couldn’t just erase those memories that easily. They were deeply ingrained into your brain and every cell in your body that it was only by instinct that you reacted so severely to those memories. Not to say that it didn’t also remind you of your time at the orphanage--that orphanage, that place of hell was the one place you didn’t want to remember.  _

_ Those hands, those large hands and those malicious smiles.  _

_ The blood and the screaming--the screaming of your friend.  _

_ And the cold, the bitter, unforgiving cold.  _

_ It was so chilly that night, so much so that your fingers had gone purple from the lack of circulation and your body had begun to involuntary shiver from the hypothermia.  _

_ You shook your head and pushed away those thoughts. _

_ You didn't want to think about them--not anymore.  _

_ Tonight though, was the night that the forecasters had declared that the citizens of Italy would see their first sighting of snow. Although your sister was thrilled about it, you were absolutely petrified and your subtle reaction hadn’t gone unnoticed by Mihawk.  _

_ You were hiding near the fireplace when the large, double doors creaked open, revealing the short, pink-haired girl on the end staring at you with round eyes. She had a stitched teddy bear clutched in her hand and a box of pencils in the other as she hopped over to the epicenter of the room. Without a word, the girl seated herself on the soft, faux fur rug and went to work on jotting down whatever it was in her journal. It was only when you shifted in your seat, causing the couch to groan under the weight that she finally noticed your presence in the room and when she did, she looked up at you and blinked. Before long, she got bored and went back to what she was doing, idly scrawling into the notebook as you continued to stare at her in silence. _

_ Although it had been a year since your arrival at the manor, the two of you had never really connected considering the fact that your personalities were polar opposites of each other. She was the eccentric type that loved the morbidly cute and she was generally drawn to more excitable people, which meant that she avoided you since you were the contrast of that. Still, it didn’t mean that she didn’t try to get closer to you, especially after receiving ‘the talk’ to be nicer from Mihawk.  _

_ Perona’s eyes dropped from your dazed face and back to the teddy still wrapped in her arms as she asked, “Why are you sitting there by yourself? Mihawk made dinner, you should come with us.” _

_ You silently stared at her with wide orbs as you continued to shiver in your spot, glued to the seat when you glanced over at the window again. As the night progressively became darker and the snow became heavier, you grew ever-more petrified. The pale white flecks were almost to the point where they were riding up the windows, climbing up the frosted panes as if to mock you.  _

_ “Still not inclined to talk?” She sighed heavily as she dropped the pencil that was in her hand.  _

_ You shook your head. _

_ “What am I going to do with you.” Perona heaved herself into a sitting position before going over to stand before the wall length windows, pressing her hands to the thin pane as she gazed out at the wispy world. “Beautiful, isn’t it? The snow.”  _

_ You raised your eyes to the shimmering darkness, your heart palpitating ever harder in your chest. If you could help it, you wanted to avoid looking at the pale flecks. It didn’t help that it surrounded you, but the least you could do was look away and pretend as if it wasn’t there.  _

_ Blissful ignorance...  _

_ You raised your hand and squeezed at the area over your heart to stop the clenching of the organ.  _

_ “But, I suppose you don’t like it, do you?” Perona walked away from the window and pulled the curtains before making her way to you. She sat down in the middle of the chaise lounge and lifted her teddy, shaking it in front of you as she placed it in your lap. “Come on, let’s go get dinner. We can talk more about your aversion to snow later.” _

_ You glanced down at the soft plush in your hands, kneading the squishiness until you felt your fear melt away. Once you were devoid of any jitters, you allowed yourself to be pulled away by the pink-haired girl. She brought you to the lavish dining table, where the three of you feasted on roasted lamb and vegetables that night. _

_ Overtime, as the snow grew thicker and blanketed the bright countryside, you grew closer to the pink-haired girl and your stoic, swordsman of a foster parent and as odd as your dynamic was, you couldn’t help but feel safe with them, for the first time in your life. In time, the two helped ease your worries about the cold and reassured you that you’d never have to live another day on the streets again. As fearful as you were of that, you really wanted to believe their word. You wanted to believe that you had a second chance at life--a chance to live out a normal childhood.  _

_ Naturally, your worries had faded when the days grew warmer and your relationship with the two grew stronger. You were even allowed to spar with Mihawk on occasion! The memories of your time at the orphanage faded to the back of your mind and your life as a normal human finally began. Perona, of course, remained with you for as long as she was able before moving onto bigger and better things. Although you didn’t know what she did half of the time, you trusted that your father did, at the very least. He was just as--or probably more shady than your step-sister. However, their pasts didn’t concern you considering you also came from a dubious background. All that mattered was that you had them and they had you. Nothing more, nothing less. _

_ \--But your past would never just stay in your subconscious forever. _

_ You were bound to face them at some point or another...  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might not be able to submit another chapter for a while considering the crap that I'm going to have to go through next week. T_T  
> Preparing for the finals that appear in the next two weeks. T_T


End file.
